It's all pretty common, I think... Like you I grew up abroad and struggled with the lack of information at primary school. It was difficult to get test results for example and all we got was meet/exceed standard. However, our daughter was aware she was sitting tests and did get homework from year 1. I don't know if it helped her with the transition to secondary school to be honest as the type of homework she got in year 7 was very different to what she was getting at primary school.