During 1998 and 1999, the Starting School Project at the University of Western Sydney-Macarthur conducted a survey across New South Wales (Australia) of parent and teacher opinions about children's successful transition to school. Survey responses were received from 240 teachers and 243 parents of young children. Respondents were grouped according to geographic location: metropolitan Sydney and Wollongong, "regional" areas (major rural centers), and "rural" areas (small rural communities and isolated areas). The survey examined physical issues (child's physical size and ability to interact with adults), child's knowledge of school rules, social factors, health factors, and distance and other issues. Differences were found among groups of respondents concerning the perceived importance of preschool experiences, the nature of these experiences, the particular effects of geographic isolation, school and class size, the nature of local communities, distance education, the effects of the rural recession, the role of technology in children's education, and the nature of transition to school programs. Despite the differences, most parents and teachers wanted children to be happy to go to school, to feel positive about themselves as learners, and to settle into the routines of school life. An appendix includes the factor structure of 47 survey items. (Author/SV)