Hadow (1928)

Notes on the text
Preliminary pages Membership, Analysis, Preface, Introduction
Chapter 1 Books in schools 1810 to 1928
Chapter 2 Place and function of books
Chapter 3 Provision of books by LEAs
Chapter 4 School and public libraries
Chapter 5 Guidance for teachers, production of books
Chapter 6 Cost and use of books
Chapter 7 Conclusions and recommendations
Appendix I List of witnesses
Appendix II Practice of sample LEAs
Appendix III Provision of books in London
Appendix IV Expenditure on books
Appendix V Provision of books in Scotland
Appendix VI Publication of new books
Index

Chapter 6 The cost of school books and various questions connected with their use both in the school and in the home
[pages 100 - 106]

The cost of school books

71. The price of books advanced very rapidly during the [first world] war, and immediately after its conclusion. The representatives of the County Councils' Association and of several other organisations, both of administrators and of teachers, informed us that any subsequent decrease in the cost of books had been slight. The Publishers' Association of Great Britain and Ireland said that in producing a book there was a limit beyond which the cost could not be reduced however many copies might subsequently be printed, and they stated that in many instances the number of school books printed was such that the limit had already been reached. This consideration applied especially to class books in the basic subjects of history, geography, English and arithmetic, which generally had a large circulation. On the other hand for books on the various branches of practical instruction, such as handicraft and needlework, there was not, as a rule, a sufficient demand to enable publishers to print up to the limit. The Publishers' Association also explained that there was a limit to the number of atlases which could be satisfactorily printed off from one set of plates. Coloured maps cost from four to five times as much to produce as ordinary black and white maps. The reason why American geographies often contained more coloured maps than those printed in Great Britain, was that Americans were prepared to pay a much higher price for their school books. Several teachers and inspectors pointed out that the expense of class books might be appreciably reduced by omitting unnecessary prints, illustrations, maps, etc, (1) and by restricting the space allocated in many modern textbooks to exercises and questions on each lesson. In discussing the price of school books many witnesses drew attention to the fact that the small amounts that were allowed in a number of areas compelled head teachers against their better judgement to select lower priced books or to dispense altogether with class books in certain subjects. The Publishers' Association were of opinion that many authorities had not increased their outlay on books in proportion to the unavoidable rise in cost of production since the war.

The minimum number of books required by each pupil

72. There was general agreement among our witnesses that authorities should keep in view a certain minimum number of books which should be available for every scholar, according to the stage of school life which he had reached. But to prescribe in detail, or even in general terms, what the minimum number of such books should be, is difficult. So much depends not only on the methods of teaching, which may change from stage to stage, but also upon the variety of ways in which different teachers treat the same stage. It would dearly be unwise to revert to the precision of former Codes and to suggest that the children of one age require three reading books and children of another age only two. (2) Nor would it be desirable to give any advice respecting the number of books to be used without taking into account the size and content of the books and the use to which they are to be put - factors which are far from uniform.

In Chapter 2, Sections 24 to 27, we have suggested the kinds of book which are required in different types of school, if they are to be properly equipped. Beyond these general suggestions it is impossible to go for the reasons explained above. But authorities will not find it difficult to estimate for a type of school or a particular school how many books are indispensable for the efficient working of the course of instruction.

The use and acquisition of books by pupils

73. Many witnesses called attention to the fact that the vast majority of pupils of public elementary schools, and even a considerable number of those in grammar schools, had never possessed a school book of their own. It was stated that in most elementary schools books were distributed to the pupils in class at the beginning of each lesson and then collected at the end. Such conditions are doubtless due chiefly to lack of means, but it is evident that from the educational point of view they are highly unsatisfactory. (3) It is clearly desirable that every pupil should be allowed, at least in school, to retain possession of books which he is constantly using, and that they should remain in his keeping until the end of the term or year in which he requires them.

We think that the older scholars, from the age of 11 and upwards, should in addition be encouraged to take books home. The educational advantages of such an arrangement are obvious. The Incorporated Association of Headmasters stated that many headmasters of secondary schools had been much impressed by the rapid development in the interest, intelligence and industry of those pupils from public elementary schools who had received, presumably for the first time, a supply of textbooks and works of reference for their personal use in school and for homework. We understand that corresponding improvement has been observed in the work of pupils in selective modern schools and advanced classes when the same facilities in the possession and use of books have been provided. We desire to see this practice extended as widely as possible to older pupils of the age of 11 and upwards in all schools. In poor districts where many of the children have few opportunities for home study, and where there is frequently no suitable place for keeping books in their homes, special arrangements might be made for such pupils to read books in school out of school hours on the lines which we suggest in Section 74 of this chapter.

Several witnesses made the suggestion that books on certain subjects in which individual pupils have displayed special aptitude or interest, might towards the end of their school life be given to them as a privilege or reward. We cordially agree with this proposal. We also suggest that authorities might allow head teachers to give their pupils suitable books which have been removed from the school stock book, but which are still in sufficiently good condition for further use.

Further we would recommend that authorities should consider the possibility, when providing senior pupils with books likely to be of permanent interest and value, and required by them throughout their whole course, that such books should from the first be committed to the special charge of each scholar at the beginning of the course; and that under appropriate conditions the pupils might be allowed to keep them on leaving school. This would apply especially to Bibles, atlases, dictionaries and certain kinds of history books and anthologies of verse. This method would probably help to secure more careful use of books in school and would also provide old scholars with the nucleus of a home library.

Arrangements for keeping books within the school

74. We have already called attention in Section 54 of Chapter 4 to the importance of providing adequate accommodation for school and class libraries, and of taking care to ensure that the collections of reference books are systematically arranged, classified and catalogued. We consider it equally important that suitable accommodation should be provided for the class books used by individual pupils. In the past the provision of such accommodation was a simple matter, since school books were few in kind and were distributed at the beginning and collected at the end of each lesson at which they were used. They were then replaced in the teacher's cupboard until required again. Thus they were used only under the direct supervision of the teacher, and, where such conditions still prevail, the maximum care and safety of the books are secured because their number and condition are checked at each lesson. But modern requirements demand a greater variety of books, and freer and more continuous access to them. As a consequence the method of ensuring their safety and careful use has become a matter of serious consideration from the point of view of economy.

In this connection it must be remembered that in a large number of schools the pupils are allowed to take home some of the class books, and that they frequently provide their own satchels and cases for carrying such books. It is evident that any arrangement by which the books used by the scholar are under his own control involves some such provision as locker desks, or nests of lockers, or small compartments either in cupboards or some kind of framework which can be closed by the teacher at the end of the day's work. The last named arrangement seems to be specially desirable wherever the school building is used for other purposes. But in all these circumstances steps must be taken to secure (a) that each child may recognise his own books, and (b) that the teacher shall be able to exercise a complete check upon all the books so lent to the pupil. Where equipment of the kind suggested cannot be provided, or where class books still have to be used indiscriminately by all the members of the class, the control of the books by the teacher under present day conditions is more difficult. It would be necessary for him to examine the books individually at intervals during the year, and also frequently to check the numbers against those entered on the classroom stock list, in order that damaged books may be withdrawn and excessive loss may be prevented. This inevitably tends to restrict the free use of class books, and we would accordingly urge that suitable accommodation should be provided, whenever and wherever possible.

In cases where the scholars are allowed to retain some or all of the class books in use, but where it is difficult or impossible for them to study at home, and where there are no special facilities for juvenile readers in the local public libraries, the authority in consultation with the head teacher might consider the desirability of assigning a room at the school on certain days of the week for the use of older pupils, so that they may read for themselves out of school hours under proper supervision. It is highly desirable that the room assigned for this purpose should have some of the equipment of a library.

The average life of school books

75. It was pointed out that the length of time for which a school book could be used depended not only on its binding and form and on its being continuously in use, but also on the character of the school and upon local conditions. For instance, the life of school books in poorer neighbourhoods and in industrial districts, where the atmosphere is charged with smoke and dirt, is necessarily short. (4) Much, too, depends on the conditions under which the books are kept. It was stated that the loan of books for home study often entailed a very rapid deterioration, especially in crowded urban areas. Many witnesses called attention to the fact that there had been of late a tendency to reduce the quality of the binding in school books, and there is no doubt that the character of the binding affects appreciably the life of the book. Several witnesses were of opinion that paper bound books lasted about two years, books bound in thin cotton three years, and stiff bound books about five years. Several teachers pointed out that if books for school use were very well bound they often became dirty and ragged inside long before they were completely worn out, or the contents became obsolete. (5) We understand that the quality and suitability of the paper used for school books has improved considerably since the issue in 1913 of the British Association's Report on the Influence of School Books upon Eyesight. It was recommended in that Report that the paper used should be opaque, hard, free from gloss and untinted, or slightly tinted towards cream colour.

Apart from the question of infection, which we discuss next, school books in general use may after a few years become so dirty and unsightly that it is advisable to destroy them. Many witnesses, including the Association of Directors and Secretaries for Education, were of opinion that in practice school books were not destroyed so frequently as was desirable. Several witnesses stated that books that were unfit for use were still being used in many schools, particularly in rural areas, because the allowance granted by the local authority was not sufficient to purchase new class books.

The possible conveyance of infection through school books

76. We collected a considerable body of evidence bearing on the possible conveyance of infection through books, from the Medical Department of the Board of Education, from the Pathological Laboratory of the Ministry of Health, from several school medical officers in county and urban areas, and from the medical officers of three great public schools.

Dr RH Crowley, Senior Medical Officer of the Board of Education, informed us that the experiments directed to the discovery of specific micro-organisms on books or other property of infected persons have been few, and for the most part the results have been negligible. Dr Crowley stated, and our other medical witnesses corroborated, that the risk of conveyance of infection by books was very small, and altogether disproportionate to the other risks which existed in public elementary schools. Next to a child actually suffering from an infectious disease while at school, the greatest danger of infection arose from persons who were 'carriers' and the least from inanimate objects. So far as infected articles were concerned, attention should be concentrated on those that were liable to gross contamination, such as towels, handkerchiefs. brushes used for art work, etc, and pencils and pens which were sometimes sucked by pupils. A book could not become infected unless it was actually used by an infected child, and even then it probably remained infected for a short time only.

Dr JAH Brincker, the Principal Assistant Medical Officer in the Public Health Department of the London County Council, told us that all recent work had emphasised the preponderant influence of personal infection as compared with the influence of inanimate objects. Dr Brincker stated that in the London schools books and apparatus were not disinfected as a routine measure. The practice is to replace them whenever they are worn or soiled, whether infectious diseases are rife or not. Library books taken to infected homes by the children are usually fumigated by the Medical Officer of Health before they are returned to the school library. A similar procedure is carried out in regard to books borrowed from the Council Education Library by teachers who have been exposed to infection.

Several witnesses pointed out that there was no occasion to destroy old and dirty books on the ground that they were sources of infection, as there was no evidence that dirt on books was in itself a culture ground for infected germs. In regard to means for disinfecting books, several witnesses considered that disinfection by formalin vapour was only completely effective if the vapour had access to all the pages which might be actually infected, a condition which did not usually obtain in the ordinary process of disinfection by that method. Most of our witnesses thought that disinfection by dry heat was much more effective and did not, as a rule, injure the books beyond slightly warping their bindings.

The general tenor of the evidence may be summed up in a sentence taken from the memorandum of Dr JAH Brincker. 'Modern experience proves more and more that dosage. virulence, and susceptibility of the individual are of such great importance in the process of infecting the individual and spreading disease that the importance of spread from school books recedes almost into insignificance as compared with the more common and important sources of spread.'

Footnotes

(1) See also Chapter 2, section 23.

(2) See Chapter 1, Sections 10 and 12.

(3) cf. The description in Appendix V of the practice in Scotland of allowing pupils to have the custody of school books.

(4) In this connection several witnesses pointed out that, if hot water could be provided in the school lavatories, the class books would have a much longer life.

(5) The older books became obsolete partly owing to new discoveries, but chiefly owing to the introduction of fresh methods of presenting and treating the subject in question.