Children and their Primary Schools: A Report of the Central Advisory Council for Education (England) Volume 1: Report

A report of the Central Advisory Council for Education

(England)Volume 1: ReportHER MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE PRICE 151 Od NET

Piale I

(Fro,,'lspcr'

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND SCIENCE

Children and their Primary SchoolsA

Report of the Central Advisory Council for Education (England)V O L U M E 1: THE R E P O R T

LONDON

HER MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE 1 96 7

First Published 1967 Fourth impression 1968

FOREWORD

In August 1 963 the Central Advisory Council for Education (England) were asked by Sir Edward Boyle, the then Minister of Education, to consider the whole subject of primary education and the transition to secondary educa tion. Their Report is now published and everyone-not only those professionally concerned with education, but parents and the general publimust be grateful for the thoroughness with which they have carried out their task. Primary education is the base on which all other education has to be built. Its importance cannot be overestimated. The many recommendations in the Report, some of far-reaching signi ficance, will be studied with the greatest care by the Government and, I am sure, by all the other interests concerned. There can be no doubt that the work done by the Council, with so much diligence and public spirit, will enable decisions to be reached on a more informed basis by those who are charged with securing the best development of English education within the resources available. I most warmly thank Lady Plowden and her colleagues for this valuable Report. ANTHONY CROSLAND

November 1 966.

28th October, 1966 Dear Secretary of State, In August 1963, the then Minister of Education, Sir Edward Boyle, asked the Central Advisory Council for Education (England) "to consider primary education in all its aspects, and the transition to secondary education". I now have much pleasure in submitting the Report of the Council. The Central Advisory Council for Education (Wales) were given identical terms of reference and we understand that they, too, win report soon. We have been able to keep in touch with their work through the members appointed jointly to both Councils. Yours sincerely. BRIDGET PLOWDEN

(Chairman)The Rt. Hon. Anthony Crosland,

M.P., Secretary of State for Education and Sciencep.c.,

iv

MEMBERSHIP OF THE CENTRAL ADVISORY COUNCIL FOR EDUCATION (ENGLAND) Lady Plowden, J.P. (Chairman). Sir John Newsom, C.B.E., (Deputy Chairman), Chairman, Public Schools Commission; Director, Longmans Green & Co. Ltd. Mr. H. G. Armstrong, Educational Psychologist, West Riding. Professor A. J. Ayer, F.B.A., Wykeham Professor of Logic, University of Oxford. Miss M. F. M. Bailey, Headmistress, Skerton Girls' County Secondary School, Lancaster. (Appointed January 1964). Mrs. M. Bannister, Housewife and Parent. Miss M. Brearley, C.B.E., Principal, Froebel Institute College of Education, Roehampton. Dr. 1. C.R. Byatt, Lecturer in Economics, London School of Economics and Political Science. (Appointed February 1965). The Hon. Mrs. J. Campbell, Housewife and Parent; Hon. Secretary, Rich mond upon Thames Association for the Advancement of State Education. Professor D. V. Donnison, Professor of Social Administration, London School of Economics and Political Science: Vice-Chairman, Public Schools Commission. Miss Z. E. Dix, Head Teacher, Field End Infants' School, Middlesex. Professor C. E. Gittins, Professor of Education, University College of Swansea; formerly Chief Education Officer, Monmouthshire; Chairman, Central Advisory Council for Education (Wales). Miss S. E. Grey, Organiser for Infant Education, Glamorgan; Member of Central Advisory Council for Education (Wales). Mr. E. W. Hawkins, Director, Language Teaching Centre, University of York; formerly, Headmaster, Calday Grange County Grammar School for Boys, Hoylake, Cheshire. Miss E. M. Parry, Inspector of Schools, Bristol; Vice-Chairman, National Nursery Examination Board. Mr. A. Puckey, Deputy Head Teacher, The Elms Junior Mixed School, Nottingham. Mr. T. H. F. Raison, Editor of "New Society". Alderman Mrs. E. V. Smith, J.P., Member and former Chairman, Birming ham Education Committee. Mr. R. T. Smith, Headmaster, Bampton C. of E. Junior Mixed and Infants' School, Oxfordshire. Professor J. M. Tanner, Professor in Child Health and Growth, University of London, Institute of Child Health. Brigadier L. L. Thwaytes, D.L., Vice-Chairman, West Sussex County Council; formerly Chairman, West Sussex Education Committee. (Appointed January 1964). Mr. T. H. Tunn, Director of Education, Sheffield. v

vi

MEMBERSHIP OF THE CENTRAL ADVISORY COUNCIL

Mr. Martin Wilson, C.B.E., Formerly Secretary for Education, Shropshire. Mr. F. M. White, Headmaster, St. Faith's School, Cambridge. (Appointed January 1964). Dr. M. Young, Chairman, Advisory Centre for Education; Chairman, Social Science Research Council; Director, Institute of Community Studies. The Council were appointed in August 1 963 and began work under their present terms of reference in October 1 963. Mr. P. Mursell resigned from membership of the Council in January 1964 and Mr. H. B. Rose in February 1 965. The following members of the Department and H.M. Inspectorate assisted the Council (but see also Note on Our Methods of Work and Acknowledge ments at end of Chapter 32 and Annex B): Miss S. M. C. Duncan, H.M.I. Miss N. L. Goddard, Inspector of Schools, Inner London Education Committee (seconded to Department). Mr. D. T. Jones, O.B.E., H.M.I. Mr. J. E. H. Blackie, C.B., H.M.I., Assessor. Mr. D. H. Leadbetter, C.B., Assessor. Miss E. M. McDougall, H.M.I., Assessor. Miss M. E. Nicholls, H.M.I., Assessor.

Secretaries Mr. M. Kogan (Secretary). Mr. N. Summers (Assistant Secretary until March 1965.)Miss C. K. Burke (Assistant Secretary from January 1964).

The estimated cost of the production of the Report is 120,699 of which 38,225 represents the estimated cost of printing and publication 67,637 the estimated cost of research commissioned on behalf of the council and 14,837 the travelling and subsistence costs of members.

Table of ContentsVOLUME 1

ParagraphsPART ONE INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1 Introduction

..

1-8

PART

Two9-7512 & 1 3 14-20 21-23 24-28 29-32 33-38 39-4 1 42-52 53-55 56-64 65-74 75

T HE GROWTH OF THE CHILD CHAPTER 2 The Children: Their Growth and Development

Physical Growth from Birth to Adolescence Individual Differences in Rates of Maturing The Growth of the Brain Critical or Sensitive Periods The Interaction of Heredity and Environment Environmental Factors Affecting Physical Growth The Trend Towards Earlier Physical Maturity.. The Development of Behaviour Language .. The Measurement of Intelligence and its Bearing on Educational Decisions The Emotional Development of the Child Implications

PART THREE THE HOME, SCHOOL AND NEIGHBOURHOOD CHAPTER 3 The Children and Their Environment

76-10183 & 84 85 & 86 87-89

A Pool of Ability Prospects for Improvement The National Survey The Findings of the Survey Importance of Parental Attitudes vii

90 & 9092- 101

viii

TABLE OF CONTENTS Paragraphs102-130 107- 1 1 0 111 1 12 1 1 3- 1 18 1 19 & 120 1 2 1 - 123 124-126 127-129 1 30 131-177 1 36 & 1 37 1 3 8 & 139 140- 1 46 147- 1 50 1 5 1- 1 54 1 55- 1 57 1 58- 1 62 1 63 1 64 1 65 1 66 & 1 67 1 68- 1 70 1 7 1 & 1 72 1 73 1 74- 1 77 178-199 1 8 1 & 182 1 83- 1 86 1 87- 1 98 1 99 200-255 202 203-207

CHAPTER 4 Participation by Parents Co-operation with Parents Parent-Teacher Associations A Minimum Programme Visiting the Homes A Policy for Each Local Education Authority The Community School . . The Way Ahead . . Interesting Parents Early Recommendations CHAPTER 5 Educational Priority Areas .. The Educational Needs of Deprived Areas Hope for the Future Educational Assumptions and Policies . . The Distribution of Resources Educational Priority Areas Special Groups More Teachers Colleges of EducationBuildings .. Nursery Education Other Priorities First Steps.. A Continuing Policy Conclusion Recommendations ..

CHAPTER 6 Children of Immigrants Numbers Educational ProblemsThe Curriculum Recommendations

CHAPTER 7 The Health and Social Services and the SchoolChild

The Health of the School Child The School Health and Dental Service and the Health Visitors Medical Examinations Speech Therapy Services .. Child Guidance, School Psychological and.

208-21 0 21 1-2 1 4

TABLE OF CONTENTSRecommendations The Education Welfare Officers The Child Care and Probation Services Voluntary Services Social Work and Related Services Organisation and Deployment of Services Co-ordination Training and Recruitment The Schools and the Social Services Conclusions Summary .. Forms of Report Involving Parents

ix

Paragraphs 215 21 6-220 221-223 224 225-227 228 & 229 230-233 234 235-241 242-254 255 Pages 93-94

PART FOUR THE STRUCTURE OF PRIMARY EDUCATION CHAPTER 8 Primary Education in the 1960s: Its Organisationand Effectiveness 256-290

The Legal Position Reorganisation of Primary and Secondary Education .. Changes within Primary Education Some Other Features Assessments of Primary Education Description of Schools .. Recommendation

257 258 259-265 265 & 266 267-276 277-289 290291-343

CHAPTER 9 Providing for Children Before Compulsory Education I. The Present Position . . The Case for Nursery Education Mothers at Work: The Economic Argument .. Arguments against Nursery Education n. Our Recommendations: Future Patterns o Nursery f Education Nursery Groups and Day Nurseries: A Unified Service The Age Range of Nursery Education Part-Time Nursery Education The Encouragement of Attendance Nursery Education and Parents The Future of Voluntary Nursery Groups

292-308 296-304 305 306-308 309-326 313-3 1 5 316 317 3 1 8 & 319 320-322 323-325

x

TABLE OF CONTENTSSiting of Nurseries Ill. The Expansion of Nursery Education: The Places

Paragraphs 326 327-343 328 329 & 330 331 332 & 333 334 & 335 336-338 339 & 340 341 & 342 343 344-407 344-346 347-351 352 353-356 357-359 360-364 365-378 379-387 388-392 393-394 395-398 399-405 406 407408-423

Needed, Their Staffing and Accommodation The Number of Places Needed .. Full-Time Attendance for a Minority Places Needed Staffing the NurseriesThe Numbers Needed: Teachers The Numbers Needed: Nursery Assistants Buildings .. Conclusion RecommendationsCHAPTER 10 The Ages and Stages of

Primary Education

When Should Primary Education Begin1 Disadvantages of Termly Entry.. Chronological Versus Developmental Age Easing Entry to School . . Age of Entry The Length of the Infant School Course Should the Age of Transfer to Secondary Educa tion be Raised1 12 or 131 . .

..

Provision for Exceptional Cases The Need for a National Policy Making the Changes An Emergency Plan for Infant Schools Conclusion: A Change of Name Recommendations

CHAPTER 11 Selection for Secondary Education ..Impact of Selection Procedures Selection Procedures RecommendationsCHAPTER 12 Continuity and Consistency Between the Stages of

411 & 412 413-422 423424-448

Education

Home to School . . Separate or Combined Schools Avoiding Strain at Time of Transfer Contacts Between Teachers in Successive Stages of Education

424 & 425 426 427-430 431 & 432

TABLE OF CHAPTERSInterchange of Knowledge of Pupils Introducing Pupils to New Schools Support from Parents Consistency in Work and Organisation Content of Curriculum Recommendations

xi Paragraphs433-437 438 & 439 440 & 44 1 442-445 446 & 447

448449-467 450 45 1-456 457-459 460 461 462 463-466 467 4692 469 & 470 471 & 472 473 & 474 475-477 478 & 479 470-483 484-491 492

CHAPTER 1 3 The Size of Primary SchoolsThe Existing Situation Economic Arguments Staffing Costs in Manpower and Money Transport Costs Foreign Practice Conclusions .. Suitable Sizes of Schools for Primary Children..

.

Recommendations

CHAPTER 14 Education in Rural Areas School Closures Changing Social ConditionsRural Schools: The Premises Staffing Children and the Schools Size and Age Range of Rural Schools Help for Rural Schools Recommendations

PART FIVE THE CHILDREN IN THE SCHOOLS: CURRICULUM AND INTERNAL ORGANISATION CHAPTER 15 The Aims of Primary Education CHAPTER 16 Children Learning in School . . Towards Freedom of Curriculum Research on Children's Learning Aspects of Children's Learning The Time-Table Flexibility in the Curriculum Use of the Environment Discovery Evaluation of Children's Progress Recommendations.

493-507

508-554508- 5 1 7 5 18-522 523-535 536 & 537 538-542 543-548 549 & 550 551-553 554

xii

TABLE

OF

CONTENTS Paragraphs555-721 558-577 563-566 567 568 & 569 570 & 571 572 573-576 577 578-6 13 580-582 583 & 584 585-590 591-596 597-599 600 601-6 13 6 14-6 19 620-634 635-646 647-662 663-675 676-685 686-696 697-713 714-721 722--733 728-733 734-751 736-742 743-750 751 752--83 3 752-777 754-760 76 1-768 769-771 772-777 778-788

CHAPTER 1 7 Aspects of the Curriculum .. (A) Religious Education Teachers' Attitudes Difficulties of the Present Position The School Community . . The Act of Worship Religious EducationThe Agreed Syllabus Recommendations (B) English Speech Teaching Children to Read Standards of Reading A Range of Books Poetry Drama Children's Writing

(C) Modern Languages(D) History (E) Geography

(F) (G) (H) (I) (J) (K)

Mathematics Science ft Art and Cra Music PhYSical Education Sex Education

CHAPTER 1 8 Aids to Learning and to Teaching Programmed Learning . .CHAPTER 19 The Child in the School Community

Relationships in Primary Schools Punishment Recommendations CHAPTER 20 How Primary Schools are Organised I. Developments in the Class Teacher System Individual, Group and Class Learning . . Team Teaching Conclusions.

The Class Teacher

f 11. The Size o Class

TABLE OF CONTENTS

xiii

Conclusions Ill. The Composition o a Class f Infant Schools and Classes Junior Schools and Classes Age "Vertical Classification" Classes Including Less Than a Year Group Classification by Attainment or Ability (Stream ing) Conclusions IV. The Length o the School Day and Term f RecommendationsCHAPTER 2 1 Handicapped Children in Ordinary Schools

Paragraphs 786-788 789-825 792-794 795-797 798 799-804 805 806-8 17 8 1 8-825 826-832 833834-860

Parents The Handicapped Child in the Ordinary School Slow Learners The Teachers RecommendationsCHAPTER 22 The Education of Gifted Children

843 & 844 845-848 849-853 854-859 860861-872

RecommendationPART T HE ADULTS

872SIX

IN THE SCHOOLS

Introduction: The Role of the TeacherCHAPTER 23 The Staffing of Schools

873-878879-902

Men and Women Teachers Full-Time and Part-Time Teachers Unqualified Teachers Ratio of Teachers to Pupils Distribution of Teachers Ancillary Helpers The Future Primary and Secondary School Staffing RecommendationsCHA PTER 24 The Deployment of Staff

8 8 1 & 882 883 884 & 885 886 & 887 888 & 889 890-893 894-898 899-901 902 903-948 903-905 906-911

The Proportion of Men and Women Teachers in Primary Schools The Criteria for Staffing Schools

xiv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ParagraphsThe Recruitment and Use of Part-Time Teachers Various Kinds of Ancillary Help and Helpers . . Teachers' Aides .. .. The Head Teacher and His Staff Advice and Inspection RecommendationsCHAPTER 25 The Training of Primary School Teachers

9 1 2- 9 1 7 9 1 8-921 922-928 929-940 941-947 948 949-1028 952-957 958-960 96 1-998 96 1 & 962 963 964 965-969 970-980 972 973 974 975-977 978 & 979 980 981-983 984- 1027 985-990 991 992-998 999- 1012 1013- 1 027 1014- 1 025 1 026 & 1 027 1 028

The Present Position: A Factual Summary The Structure of Training The Students in Training for Primary Work . . Admission of Students . . Proportion of Men and Women Students Mature Students Graduates The Courses in Colleges of Education and University Departments of Education . . Main Courses Education Course and Teaching Practice Curriculum Courses Staffing of Colleges of Education B.Ed. Courses Other Graduate Courses Some General Points about Students' Life and Work The Relationship between Schools and Teachers in Training Institutions Teaching Practice Our Views Other Aspects of the Relationship Between Schools and Teacher Training Institutions The Probationary Year. .

In-Service Training Present Provision of Courses and Plans for Expansion Courses for Returning Teachers RecommendationsCHAPTER 26 The Training of Nursery Assistants and Teachers'

Aides

.. ..

1029-1055 1 029- 1 033

Existing Schemes of Training

TABLE OF CONTENTS

xv

ParagraphsOther Training Schemes Our Proposals Similarities of Training and Recruitment Entry Qualifications The Nature of the Courses Length of Courses Status and Salaries of Trainees .. Part-Time Training Location and Staffing of Training Award of Qualifications Career Prospects .. Probation .. Build-Up of Recruitment RecommendationsPART SEVEN INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS CHAPTER 27 Independent Primary Schools

1034 1035 1036 & 1037 1038 & 1039 1040- 1044 1045 & 1046 1047 1048 1049 1050 1051 1052 1053 & 1054 1055

1056-1079 1079

Summary of Conclusions and RecommendationsPART EIGHT PRIMARY SCHOOL BUILDINGS AND EQUIPMENT; STATUS; AND RESEARCH CHAPTER 28 Primary School Buildings and Equipment

1080--1113 1081- 1 10 1 1081- 1083 1084 & 1085 1086-109 1 1094- 1097 1098 1099 1 100 & 1 10 1 1 102- 1 1 12 1 107- 1 1 10 1111 1 1 12 1 1 13

I. Primary School Building The Present State of Primary Buildings School Building Since 1945: Number of Places and Costs

The Improvement of Old Buildings Developments Since 1956 Some Design and Planning Implications of Our Report Cost Limits Educational Furniture and Equipment11. Equipment Allowances f Primary Schools or

Developments in School Building Since 1945 . . 1092 & 1093

Choices Open to Schools Assistance for Schools in Special Need Disparity in Local Practice Recommendations

xvi

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ParagraphsCHAPTER 29 The Status and Government of Primary Education

1114-1150

Some of the Evidence Standing of Teachers in the Community The Standing of Primary Teachers Compared with that of Secondary School Teachers The Standing of Primary School Teachers in their Dealings with Local Education Authorities Management of Schools Appointment of Staff Powers of Head Teachers Relationships of Heads and Assistant Staff General Recommendations Annex: A Note on the Method of Calculating Unit TotalsCHAPTER 30 Research, Innovation and the Dissemination of

1116-1117 1118 1119-1126 1127-1130 1131-1138 1139-1141 1142-1146 1147-1148 1149 1150 Page (421)

Information

..

1151-1166

Further StudiesPART

1165 & 1166 N INE

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS CHAPTER 31 The Costs and Priorities of Our Recommendations

1167-1204

I. The Present Position . . The Economic Yield of Primary Education 11. The Availability o Resources f Overall Resources Teachers .. Aides and Assistants Priorities .. Ill. Our Principal Proposals, Their Priority and Timing Educational Priority Areas Improvement of Staffing Elsewhere: Teachers Staffing: Aides and Assistants Building Other Proposals .. The Order of Priorities Costs and Benefits The Total Costs ., Annex A: Factors Affecting Recruitment of Assistants and Aides

1168-1170 1171-1176 1177-1184 1177 & 1178 1179 & 1180 1181-1183 1184 1185-1204 1186 & 1187 1188 1189 1190-1196 1197-1200 1201 & 1202 1203 1204 1205-1218

TABLE OF CONTENTS

xvii Paragraphs

Annex B: Offsets to the Costs of Nursery Provision and the Use of Teachers' Aides: An Estimate of the Output of Mothers who Return to WorkCHAPTER 32 Recommendations

1219- 1 228 1229-1252. 1229- 124 1 1 242 & 1743-

and Conclusions

1.

The Changing Direction

11. Recommendations and Conclusions Ill. A Note on Our Methodso Work, andAcknowledgef

ments . .

1244- 1252

NOTES OF RESERVATION

Page'486 487

Note of Reservation on Nursery Education by Mrs. M. Bannister Note of Reservation on the Organisation of Services for Under Fives by Professor D. V. Donnison, Sir John Newsom and Dr. M. Young . . Note of Reservation on Parental Contribution to the Costs of Nursery Education by Professor A. J. Ayer, Dr. 1. C. R. Byatt, Professor D. V. Donnison, Mr. E. W. Hawkins, Lady Plowden, Mr. T.H. F. Raison, Brigadier L. L. Thwaytes and Dr. M. Young . . Note of Reservation on Religious Education by Professor A. J. Ayer, Dr. I. C. R. Byatt, Professor D. V. Donnison, Mrs. E. V. Smith, Professor J. M. Tanner and Dr. M. Young Note of Reservation on Religious Education by Mr. E. W. Hawkins and Mr. M. Wilson Note of Reservation on Corporal Punishment by Miss M. F. M. Bailey A Suggestion on the Supply and Training of Teachers by Professor A. J. Ayer, Dr. I. C. R. Byatt, Mr. E. W. Hawkins, Sir John Newsom, Lady Plowden and Mr. T. H. F. Raison

487'

489492 493-

493-

Annex A: A Questionnaire to Witnesses Annex B: List of Witnesses Annex C: Visits Made Glossary Index

499504 522 537 545

No general bibliography is provided but references to printed sources are listed at the end of each chapter. Figures in the tables throughout the Report are rounded up.

List of Tables, Diagrams and Photographs Tables1 Percentage Contribution of Parental Attitudes, Home Circum stances and State of School to Variation in Educational Performance Numbers of Children from Certain Commonwealth Countries in English Schools (1966): (Primary and Secondary Schools) . . Main Causes and Numbers of Deaths in Children Under 1 5. 193 1 and 1963 4 Provision in England for Children Under Five: 1932 Compared to 1965 Pre-School Provi sion in England: Information from Depart ment of Education and Science, Ministry of Health and Home Office English Primary Education: January, 1965 Children Aged 5- 1 1 in Different Types of School: England Maintained Primary Schools: England. Number of Schools or Departments According to Numbers of Pupils on the Register: January 1965 Maintained Primary Schools or Departments by Denomination January 1965: England Nursery Education: Numbers of Full-Time Equivalent Places Needed Compulsory Education in Infant Schools Arrangements Interim Plan for Entry to First Schools Cost Limits for Different Sizes of Primary Schools (June 1966) Distribution of Pupil/Teacher Ratios by Size of School: January 1965: England Number of Small Schools in England: 1962-65 Size of Primary Class, England: January 1965 Numbers of Handicapped Pupils Receiving and Awaiting Special Education (in Special Schools, Classes, Units, in Hospitals and at Home) and Prevalence per 1 0,000 of the School Population in England and Wales, 196 1 and 1966 Primary School Staffing, 1947- 1965. England Number of Classes of Different Sizes in Primary Schools, 1947-65: England . . Numbers of Primary Pupils Per Full-Time Teacher, January 1965: England Under Present 135 1 50 169 1 70 1 73 280 76 1 08

Page

33 70

2

3

5

109 1 12 1 13

{;7

8

1 14 115 128

9

ID11 12 13 14 15 16 17

299 316 316 317

18 19

20

xviii

xx

LIST OF TABLES, DIAGRAMS AND ILLUSTRATIONS

Tables 42 4344Public Authorities' Expenditure on Maintained Primary and Nursery Schools: England Past and Projected Costs of Maintained Primary Schools on Present Policies, 1960/61-1978/79: England Projected Costs of Maintained Primary Schools and Additional Costs Resulting from the Adoption of Our Proposals: England Projected Costs of Maintained Primary and Nursery Schools and the Additional Costs of Our Proposals: England . . Assumed Annual Recruitment of School Leavers for Training as Nursery Assistants and Teachers' Aides

Page 449 450 451 452 454

45 46

DiagramslA lB Height of Average Boy and Girl from Birth to Maturity . . Rate of Growth in Height ("Height Velocity") of "Average" Boy and Girl from Birth to Maturity ..

8

8 16 98 98 107 111 280 396 400

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Year of Menarche Proportion of Pupils Aged

13 in All-Age Schools

Proportion of Pupils Aged Nine in Mixed Primary Schools Small Schools in England: Primary (Including All-Age) . . Numbers of Children in Maintained Primary Schools Aged 5 to 11 in 1947-1965, England Infant and Junior Classes A School for Oxfordshire

50 Pupils Aged 5 to 11 Years at Finmere.

School for 320 Pupils Aged 31 to 9 Years. Eveline Lowe Primary School, Rolls Road, London, S.E.l Extension to Convert Existing Infants' School for 240 Pupils of 5 to 7 Years into School for 320 Pupils of 5 to 8 Years Extensions to Convert Existing Junior Schools for 480 Pupils of 7 to 11 Years into Schools for 480 Pupils of 8 to 12 Years

401

11

402

12 A & B A Middle School for Pupils of 8 to 12 Years

403 and 404

Plates (between pages 264 and 265). Frontispiece 123 Children at Work and

1937

1966

4

Listening to a Story

LIST OF TABLES, DIAGRAMS AND ILLUSTRATIONS

xix

Tables21 Numbers of Primary Pupils Per Full-Time Teacher (Total Full Time and Full-Time Equivalent of Part-Time), January 1965: England Average Sizes of Class, January 1965: England Ancillary Help Employed in Primary Schools, 1 965 (England and Wales) . . Primary School Staffing: England Qualifications of Students Admitted to General, Housecraft, P.E. and Shortened Courses in Colleges of Education in the Years 1960-6 1 , 1961-62 and 1965-66 (England and Wales) . . Total Number of Students i n Initial Non-Graduate Courses in Colleges of Education by Type of Course and Years (England and Wales) . . Number of General and Specialist Colleges Offering Different Types of Courses . . Annual Intake of Students to Non-Graduate Courses i n General Colleges of Education (England and Wales) Age of Primary and Secondary School Buildings (England 1 962) Specified Defects in Primary School Accommodation (England 1 962) Cost of Remedying Defects in School Accommodation (Eng land) Equipment and Capitation Allowances: Numbers of L.E.As. and Amounts Available at Different Stages of Primary Education (1963) . . Salary Scales for Head Teachers Deputy Head Teachers and Graded Posts The Effects on Overall Staffing Standards of More Favourable Staffing Ratios in Educational Priority Areas . . Educational Priority Areas: Teachers, Teachers' Aides and Nursery Assistants Build-up of Recruitment of Nursery Assistants and Teachers' Aides (Including Those Needed for Educational Priority Areas) Chart Illustrating Possible Expansion of Nursery Provision in the Educational Priority Areas and Introduction of Single Date of Entry 39 Additional Capital Building Costs of Recommendations in the Report (Excluding Additions for Increased Numbers, Rehousing and Replacements) Additional Running Costs of Recommendations in the Report The Financial Cost o f Proposed Nursery Provision. .

Page

317 317 318 320

22 23 24 25

364

26

366 367 367 389 392 393

27 28 29 30 31 32

406 421 422 443 444

33 34 35 36 37

445

38

446

447 448 449

40 41

CopyrightWe are grateful to the following copyright holders for permission to repro duce photographs: Aerofilms Ltd. Miss E. E. Biggs, H.M.I. Bristol County Council Miss E. Davies, H.M.I. Devon County Council Mr. D. G. S. Dickson Essex County Council Fairy Surveys Ltd. James Galt and Co. Ltd. Mr. J. Howard Mr. K. E. Hoy Inner L ondon Education Authority Mr. T. R. Jones Mr. E. Pearson, H .M.I. Scholastic Souvenir Company Ltd. S.G. Photography Teachers' World The Times Universal Studios: by E. W. Williamson, A.R.P.S., A.I.B.P. Miss J. R. Warner, H.M.I. Mrs. D. E. Whittaker Yorkshire (West Riding) County Council

l We are gratefu to the schools whose work is illustrated in some of the photo graphs.

xxii

LIST OF TABLES, DIAGRAMS AND ILLUSTRATIONS

xxi

Plates 5 6 7 8 &9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 & 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 & 30 31 32 33 & 34 35 & 36

Experimenting with Clay Care in Building An Incentive to Read Looking Forward to Adult Life Living Things A Record of the Past Reading and Writing Concentration Work or Play? Freedom to Move Dramatic Encounter A School in its Environment The Environment the same School Creates School in a Congested Suburb A Suburban Infant School Without Traffic Dangers Primary Schools in the Centre of a City Primary School and Clinic adjacent to a Secondary School Junior Children Are Most Agile Expression in Movement Finding Out the Properties of Things -and Numbers Mathematical Problems arise from Real Life Weather Station Comparing Temperatures in a Puddle Using Mechanical Aids in Small Groups Learning about Colour and Design Imagination and Accuracy in Reconstructing the Past: Top Juniors Lifting Weights with Pulleys Differences between Art and Crafts for Boys and Girls are disappearing Following individual Interest Inventiveness with Materials Individual and Group Work The Beginning of Life-Long Interests

3738 39 & 40 4 1 & 42 43 44 45 & 46

Part One

Introduction

CHAPTER I

Introduction1. When the Minister of Education asked us "to consider primary education in all its aspects and the transition to secondary education", he was in effect

inviting us to tell him how far the intentions of Sir Henry Hadow and his committee had been carried out and how well they had stood the test of time. Hadow, if any man, has the right to be considered the architect of the English educational system as we know it. The three reports of the Consultative Committee under his chairmanship, the Education of the Adolescent (1926), the Primary School (1931) and Infant and Nursery Schools (1933), virtually laid the foundation of what exists today. The purpose to be achieved, and the test by which its success can be recognised, he defined in 1931 in these words "What a wise and good parent will desire for his own children, a nation must desire for all children". Of course, equality of opportunity, even when it means weighting the scales to reduce inequalities, still results in unequal achieve ments. But, coupled with a commitment to the highest educational standards, it is the touchstone to apply.Are children of today at the same stage of development as children of the same age were in 1926? Ought all, or nearly all, children of the same age to be able to do the same things? How great are the differences between boys and girls, and do they vary with age? If a child's "intelligence" is tested at the age of eight or eleven, will the results hold good five or six years later? What is the relationship between environmental and genetic factors in the shaping of human ability? We know more than was known a generation ago about physical, intellectual and emotional development in children. Though nobody would suppose that we have now reached final truth, we are in a position to look again at some of the conclusions drawn by the Hadow reports. We do so in Part Il of the Report.3. In recent years a growing awareness has developed of the importance to the individual of his family and social background. The last three reports of the Council, and the Robbins report on higher education, have shown how closely associated are home and social circumstances and academic achieve ment. Is this just one of those given facts about which schools, and the community, can do nothing? To try to answer this question, we set on foot a National Survey which is included with other surveys of the same nature in Volume 2. Increasing numbers of parents are asking, and we are glad they are asking, how they can help to get the schools their children deserve. Part III of the Report is devoted to these questions of home, neighbourhood and school. It is in part about especially difficult districts or peculiarly awkward circumstances such as how to teach children who do not speak English at home. Most of Part III is about the school round any corner, the schools in which over nine-tenths of our young children are educated. 4. We have studied the structure of primary education and give our con 2. Underlying all educational questions is the nature of the child himself.

clusions in Part IV. We have dealt with the provision which might be made for1

2

INTRODUcrION

nursery education; we have discussed the length of primary school life. All this we could hardly have avoided doing since we were asked to deal with "all aspects of primary education". We have considered not only what is desirable, but whether what is desirable is feasible. One aspect of our enquiry has been made especially difficult and that is a matter on which our advice was specifically asked-the age of transfer to secondary education. In July 1965 the Department of Education and Science asked local education authorities to prepare detailed plans for the development of comprehensive education in their areas before our recommendations were known. The shape of secondary schools, and the accommodation they will require, depend on the age at which primary education ends. It would have been better if the momentous changes in the overall structure of education-the raising of the school leaving age and the associated changes in the age of transfer and secondary school organ isation-could have been considered together. We hope that our arguments in favour of a new age of transfer will be taken into account when building programmes and teacher training are planned for the 1970s. 5. The growth of comprehensive education is altering the context in which the primary schools work. In 1963, when we started work, the "11 plus" and all that went before was a major item on our agenda. Should it be retained? This proved to be a question we did not have to answer, though we may say that we welcome the disappearance of transfer examinations. We were left with another question to discuss. In the past many primary schools have "worked to" the 11 plus. If it has not been their Bible, it has often been a taskmaster. It set up minimum standards for the abler children, often in our view the wrong ones, and distorting in their effects on the curriculum. But at least they were standards. The teachers and parents had some yardstick by which to measure their pupils' work. Now it is going. How are they to know what to expect of children? These are among the problems which we discuss in Part V. 6. Part V, "The Children in the Schools", is the heart of the Report. Is there any genuine conflict between education based on children as they are, and education thought of primarily as a preparation for the future? Has "finding out" proved to be better than "being told"? Have methods been worked out through which discovery can be stimulated and guided, and children develop from it a coherent body of knowledge? Has the emphasis which the Hadow Report placed on individual progress been justified by its results? How can head teachers and class teachers arrange the internal work ing of each school and each class to meet the different needs of the highly gifted boys and girls, of slow learning pupils, and of all the infinite varieties of talent and interest that lie between ? Do children learn more through active co-operation than by passive obedience? In seeking answers to such questions we draw attention to the best practices we have found as a pointer to the direction in which all schools should move. To help children to learn there are 140,000 primary school teachers: they form the subject of Part VI. In this Part, too, the present shortage of teachers is discussed, their training, their use and the support that can best be given to them both inside and outside the school.7. English primary education has long had a high reputation. We heard

repeatedly that English infant schools are the admiration of the world. Were

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3

they resting on past laurels? Ought we to be learning by the experiments other countries were trying? We went to see. Between us, we paid visits, though they had to be brief, to many primary schools in Denmark, France, Sweden, Poland, U.S.A. and the U.S.S.R. Our journeyings are set out in Annex C. Our hosts were worried about many of the same things as we were. They were looking critically at curriculum and methods. They were concerned with such questions as how to provide for children of differing abilities, how to help most effectively children from poor circumstances, and how to recruit and make good use of teachers.

8. Finally, since another full scale enquiry into primary education is unlikely to be made for many years, we have thought it our duty in Part IX to giveas close an estimate as we can of the cost of our proposals and to indicate an order of priority.

Part Two

The Growth of the Child

CHAPTER

2

The Children: Their Growth and Development9. At the heart of the educational process lies the child. No advances in policy, no acquisitions of new equipment have their desired effect unless they are in harmony with the nature of the child, unless they are fundamentally acceptable to him. We know a little about what happens to the child who is deprived of the stimuli of pictures, books and spoken words; we know much less about what happens to a child who is exposed to stimuli which are perceptually, intellectually or emotionally inappropriate to his age, his state of development, or the sort of individual he is. We are still far from knowing how best to identify in an individual child the first flicker of a new intellectual or emotional awareness, the first readiness to embrace new sets of concepts or to enter into new relations. 10. Knowledge of the manner in which children develop, therefore, is ofprime importance, both in avoiding educationally harmful practices and in introducing effective ones. In the last 50 years much work has been done on the physical, emotional and intellectual growth of children. There is a vast array of facts, and a number of general principles have been established. This chapter is confined to those facts which have greatest educational significance and those principles which have a direct bearing on educational practice and planning.

11. Among the relevant facts are the early growth of the brain, comparedwith most of the rest of the body; the earlier development of girls compared with boys; the enormously wide variability in physical and intellectual maturity amongst children of the same age, particularly at adolescence, and the tendency nowadays for children to mature physically earlier than they used to. Among the principles are present-day concepts about critical or sensitive periods, about developmental "sequence" (that is, events which are fixed in their order but varying in the age at which the sequence begins); about the poorer resilience of boys than girls under adverse conditions; and, above all, about the complex and continuous interaction between the develop ing organism and its environment. Under this last rather cumbersome phrase lies the coffin of the old nature-versus-nurture controversy. A better under standing of genetics and human biology has ended the general argument, and provided a clearer picture of what is implied when we talk of changes in measured intelligence during a child's development.

Physical Growth f rom Birth to Adolescence 12. The manner in which the skeleton, the muscles and most of the internalorgans grow is shown in the curves of height at successive ages of the typical boy and girl. In Diagram lA the height at each age is plotted; in Diagram lB, the rate of growth, or velocity. This velocity curve shows that children are growing faster at birth than at any time during post-natal life (they grow fastest before birth) and that the growth rate decreases quite steadily until puberty is reached. From about the age of six to puberty the rate is nearly7

PART TWO. THE GROWTH OF

THE CIllLD

Diagram lA

190!180 170 160

Height of 'Average' Boy and Girl from Birth to Maturity: From 'Standards from Birth to or Maturity, f Heigh t, Weight, Height Velocity and Weight Velocity: British Children, 1965'. By J. M. Tanner, R. H. Whitehouse and M. Takaishi. 'Archives of Diseases in Child hood'. 1966. Children are measured lying