Hadow (1933)

Notes on the text
Preliminary pages Membership, Analysis, Preface, Introduction
Chapter 1 History of the development of infant education
Chapter 2 Physical development of children up to 7
Chapter 3 Mental development of children up to 7
Chapter 4 Age limits and organisation of the infant stage
Chapter 5 Medical supervision, education and training of under 5s
Chapter 6 Training and teaching of children in infant and nursery schools
Chapter 7 Staffing of infant and nursery schools, training of teachers
Chapter 8 Premises and equipment of infant and nursery schools
Chapter 9 Summary of principal conclusions and recommendations
Appendix I List of witnesses
Appendix II Anatomical and physiological characteristics of 2-7 year olds (Harris)
Appendix III Emotional development of children up to seven plus (Burt and Isaacs)
Appendix IV Notes on typical nursery schools and classes
Appendix V Manchester's student nurse scheme for 'helpers'
Appendix VI Practice in Europe and US
Index

London: HM Stationery Office

Chapter 4 Age limits and organisation of the infant stage of primary education
[pages 86 - 97]

THE LOWER AGE LIMITS FOR (a) OBLIGATORY, AND (b) VOLUNTARY ATTENDANCE

64. Since the passing of the Elementary Education Act 1870, the lower age limit for compulsory attendance in England and Wales has been fixed at five. School attendance by-laws may provide (1) that parents shall not be required to cause their children to attend school before the age of six. (2) In view of this provision, and of the fact that the attendance of children at school from the age of five has on the whole worked well in practice, we think that there is no good reason for modifying the existing law.

As regards the question of the lowest age at which children may be admitted on a basis of voluntary attendance to infant schools we think that the practice of admitting them should continue as at present, and that the arrangement which has been in operation since 1872, under which no grant is paid in respect of children under the age of three, is sensible and reasonable. In this respect 'nursery classes' differ from nursery schools, since the latter may admit children from the age of two. In a nursery school, however, more complete provision is possible for the training and nurture of very young children.

CONTINUITY IN PRIMARY EDUCATION: THE AGE FOR TRANSFER TO THE UPPER STAGE OF PRIMARY EDUCATION; COOPERATION BETWEEN THE TEACHERS IN INFANT SCHOOLS AND THOSE IN THE UPPER PART OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS; SEPARATE INFANT SCHOOLS

65. It is of the greatest importance that the primary stage of education (i.e. from the beginning of school life to the age of eleven) should be regarded as one continuous whole, and that there should be no abrupt break in the education of children under and over seven, and still less in the education of those under and over five.

Within the infant stage there is, as we explain at some length in Chapters 5 and 6, a differentiation between the training and teaching given to children below the age of five in a separate nursery school or in a nursery class within the infant school, and the training and teaching of children between the ages of five and seven plus. At present the change from the nursery school or class to the ordinary work of the infant school is sometimes too abrupt, both in the general character of the activities and courses of instruction, and in the methods of teaching. All reasonable means should, be adopted to ease this transition. Continuity in teaching is secured more readily when the education of children under the age of five is given in classes which form an integral part of the infant school, and not in separate nursery schools. (3) Nevertheless, for reasons which are stated elsewhere in this Report, (4) we think that the nursery school should be developed separately.

We discussed in Section 58 of our report on The Primary School the psychological evidence bearing on the most suitable age for transferring pupils from the infant school to the upper stage of primary education. From the psychological point of view, any marked change in teaching methods is injurious to a sensitive child and may lead to depression, timidity, nervousness, and even to open rebellion. If, however, the existing difference between the teaching methods in vogue in the infant school and in the upper part of the primary school be carefully shaded off, there is no reason, based on psychology, why promotion should not be made at some time between the ages of seven and eight. Our witnesses pointed out that even though the more formal work in the upper stage of primary education is now to some extent anticipated in the top class of the infant school (commonly called the standard class or 'standard I'), yet the methods of teaching employed in the classes to which the children are transferred on leaving the infant school should not diverge too abruptly from those hitherto used. Any noticeable discontinuity in methods of teaching, discipline, and general treatment, may seriously delay the progress even of gifted children, who indeed are often peculiarly sensitive to such changes. The head teachers and staff of the upper part of the primary school usually visit the infant departments in order to see the children who are shortly to be promoted; they have conversations with them, and afterwards discuss their attainments, aptitudes, and tastes with the 'infant' teachers.

We reaffirm recommendation No. 6 in our report on The Primary School as to the importance of making the transition from the general treatment and methods of teaching in use in infant schools to those in use in the next stage of primary education easy and gradual.

Where there are separate schools, and not merely separate departments for infants, means should be adopted to bring the teachers together from time to time; joint staff meetings will be found necessary in order to ensure that free methods of teaching and discipline are continued, and that suitable periods for out of door studies and relaxation are allowed in the classes of the primary school which the children will enter on leaving the infant school.

We assume these conditions in reaffirming the opinion expressed in our report on The Primary School (5) that children should be promoted from the infant school or department not later than between the ages of seven and eight.

In this country it has been the custom to deal with the lower stage of primary education (five to seven plus), where the number of children so permits, in separate schools or departments, (6) and in our report on The Primary School (Sections 66-68) we discussed fully the arguments for and against this traditional system of organisation. It is unnecessary to recapitulate in detail the various arguments; we will only point out that the following considerations may be urged in favour of separate infant schools:

(i) The training given in the best infant schools is very largely dependent upon the general tone and atmosphere of the school, and it is found in practice that this tone and atmosphere is difficult to maintain when older children are present.

(ii) The difficulty of a common playground for infants and children over seven, in cases where the playground space is so limited as to render it necessary for all children to use it at the same time, is serious; the free movements of the infants may be interfered with by the older children to their common danger.

(iii) The older children in a good infant school (particularly about the age of seven), often display a notable spirit of independence and initiative owing to the fact that they are in the top class. In a primary school containing children between the ages of seven and eleven the younger children could hardly occupy such a position, and the tonic effects of this arrangement would be lost. Furthermore, from the point of view of the physical and mental development of young children, and on general educational and administrative grounds, a strong case can be established for the accommodation of children over the age of seven in distinct departments or schools, when the numbers justify such an arrangement.

66. We reaffirm the recommendation which we made in our report on The Primary School that in areas where it is possible there should be separate schools or departments for children under the age of seven. (7) As regards schools in rural parts of county areas, we recognise that it would be wholly impracticable, owing to the small numbers of children, to establish separate departments for pupils below the age of seven plus. We think however that in all primary schools containing children up to the age of eleven (including even small rural schools) there should be a well defined line of demarcation between the younger and older children. In dealing with the staffing of schools (8) we refer to the means whereby this demarcation may be secured.

Although there are some problems which are peculiar to the rural school, the points of difference between urban and rural schools have frequently been overemphasised; the fundamental problems of organisation and teaching are common to all infant schools, whether urban or rural. We assume that under the general reorganisation of public elementary schools, the 'all-age' school will disappear. In the towns the characteristic primary school emerging from this reorganisation will be a school which is arranged in departments under separate head teachers for children up to seven plus, and from seven plus to eleven plus, respectively. In country districts, on the other hand, the typical unit will eventually be a primary school which contains all the children up to the age of eleven. The infant class or division(9) will form an integral part of such a school, and it is in this connection that the problems peculiar to the rural school arise.

Owing to the composite character of the groups or classes in a small primary school, it is a matter of great difficulty to organise a progressive course of instruction. So few children will fall within any given age range or grade of capacity, that it is impossible to staff the smaller schools on the basis of a separate teacher for each grade. The fact that children of varying ages and ability have usually to be grouped together would render the task of teaching them sufficiently arduous even for a skilled teacher. In Chapter 7 we deal with the staffing of the different types of small school which contain only an infant class or division. At present many of the assistant teachers in such schools are untrained, particularly those placed in charge of the infants.

We have collected a large body of data from teachers in rural schools describing the internal organisation and methods of training and teaching employed, particularly for the infant class or division. The general impression which we have derived from these memoranda and other documents is that teachers in schools which have been converted into primary schools for children up to the age of eleven are developing a technique and a type of organisation calculated to produce good results. Transfer from the infant class or division usually takes place at the age of seven or eight, though the varying number of entrants from year to year determines in some degree the age of transfer, since classes have to be kept fairly equal in size.

THE INTERNAL ORGANISATION OF THE INFANT SCHOOL: CLASSES; GROUPS; SETS; INDIVIDUAL WORK

67. The framework of the internal organisation of the infant school (like that of the schools for older children from the Lowe Code of 1862 onwards) has been based on a classification of children by age. The school is organised in classes, each containing children of the same chronological age - those under five, those aged five years, those aged six years, and so on. If the school is sufficiently large to require more than the minimum number of classes, the additional classes still fall within the same framework and there are 'parallel' classes for each year of life. Each class or group of 'parallel' classes was for long treated as a unit for purposes of syllabus, and each class was taught as a whole. This framework still governs the organisation of the great majority of infant schools.

As the ideas which derive ultimately from Froebel and his followers, from Dewey, from Montessori and the modern exponents of child psychology, began to exert more and more influence on methods of training and teaching in infant schools, the traditional conception of the 'class' and its function has been modified. The class remains the unit for purposes of staffing and registration, but for training and teaching has become a less rigid entity. While the convenience of the class as a single teaching unit for many activities of the school - games, singing, dancing, storytelling, etc - is realised, its appropriateness for other important activities is no longer admitted.

This is specially true of those activities which consist in mastering some form of skill, such as reading, writing and calculation. The old-fashioned method of class teaching was essentially a method of mass instruction. The teacher had first to decide what was practicable for the average child in her class, and then proceeded to teach this to the whole class. For the quicker children the lesson was often unnecessary, for the slower it was often premature. When teachers began to take account of the individuality of children and recognised that progress is an individual matter and that each child has his own appropriate rate of progress, they began to question the efficacy of class instruction and to look for something better. Some teachers have abandoned formal teaching almost entirely, and treat their classes as a collection of children, each of whom is working at his own pace and in his own way. They move round the class and deal with each child's difficulties in turn, and give them individually the teaching that is necessary when the opportunity offers and the child is ready for it. Others realise that in a large class there will always be a group of children more or less at the same stage and they collect these for a short lesson when they need it. Here the group is a fluid organisation and the members of the group change frequently. This division of the class into smaller groups is adopted in the majority of infant schools, and obviously is more economical of time and effort than the purely individual method. But the problem how to deal best with children individually has probably no simple solution, and most teachers find that they succeed best with a composite method in which class, group, and individual training and teaching each play their part.

We quote the following passage from the memorandum which the headmistress of a large infant school in a midland town prepared for this committee:

'With regard to methods, my experience is that the best results are obtained by judicious mixtures of three methods: (a) class teaching, (b) individual work, and (c) group teaching. Class teaching is useful when presenting some new rule or when a collective correction of given exercises is being made. Whole-time class teaching would mean that the bright children would mark time and the dull and lazy children would be left behind. Scope for individual work is very necessary for the bright child who is sufficiently intelligent to make definite progress when he is given the chance to work alone. When the individual method is applied in large classes of 50 children it is almost physically impossible for the teacher to do it conscientiously, and, as in whole-time class teaching, it is probable that the very dull and the very bright children will be comparatively neglected. The division of the class into groups of children of much the same ability is the method which produces the best results, but it is a difficult matter to divide children of the same age, say six years, into groups according to ability.'

In infant schools to which children are not admitted until they have reached or are approaching the age of five, it has sometimes been found convenient to organise what has been called a 'reception' or 'admission' class. This class provides for children coming fresh from home an introduction to school under 'nursery' conditions. The period of initiation, during which the children are kept under close and kindly observation before being placed in an appropriate class in the main school, may last for a few weeks or for a whole term, or even longer. The early signs of retardation may sometimes be detected here, and children who come from an unfavourable environment can be trained in social habits, and thus better fitted to take their part in the general life of the school. The classroom assigned to the 'reception' class is usually larger than the ordinary classroom, so that the children may have ample room in which to play and move about. The equipment of the classroom and the toys and educational apparatus supplied closely resemble those of the nursery class.

RETARDED CHILDREN IN THE LOWER STAGE OF PRIMARY EDUCATION

68. We discussed at some length in Chapter 6 of our report on The Primary School (1931) the problem of retarded children between the ages of seven plus and eleven plus. The opinion of psychologists, based largely upon the use of standardised tests of intelligence, was that as regards innate mental capacity differences between children increase in almost direct proportion to their age. On this view, throughout the child's school life, the ratio of his mental age to his chronological age seems to be fairly constant; the child who is backward by one year at the age of five will probably be backward by two years at the age of ten.

Thus, the limitations of the retarded child are not so conspicuous at the infant stage of primary education as at the age of eleven or later. Nevertheless, it is clearly important in the interest of these children that the main causes for their retardation should be discovered at as early a stage as possible in their school career. It has been found especially desirable that the head teacher should, wherever possible, become acquainted with the parents of the children, with a view to remedying any cause which may be connected with home conditions. The child guidance clinics, which are now organised in some urban areas, also may render valuable assistance.

A hasty diagnosis must, however, be carefully avoided, and segregation of dull and backward children has not, as a rule, been found necessary. Most of the infant teachers who gave evidence to us were agreed that it was generally more beneficial to the retarded children (except in cases of definite imbecility) to keep them during the infant stage with other children of their own age. In small infant schools, and in infant classes of primary schools, retarded children are able to make considerable progress owing to the application of the group and individual methods of teaching described in Section 67. In some large infant schools separate classes for retarded children have been organised; one of the main objects of this has been to ensure that such children are taught under open-air conditions. (11)

Our evidence supports the view expressed on page 36 of the Board's Handbook of Suggestions (1927), that 'the question of classification does not, as a rule, become urgent before the backward child has passed out of the infants' stage. Whilst such children often receive special attention individually, it is rarely necessary to form a separate class for those who are backward'.

School records, to which reference is made in the following Section, will provide information that should prove of great help in detecting the early signs of retardation, and in giving appropriate treatment to retarded children of different types.

We emphasise the importance of detecting early signs of retardation in children and of discovering the causes. We consider that separate classes or departments for retarded children in the infant stage are not necessary on educational grounds.

SCHOOL RECORDS AND MEDICAL RECORDS

69. The efficiency and smooth conduct of an infant school which is working under modern ideals and conditions will be greatly assisted if records are kept of each child's general development. While we deprecate any attempt to insist on keeping elaborate records, we consider it very important that some simple forms of record should be regularly made. Two forms of record are necessary:

(a) Class records of children's work and progress. In the past teachers were required to keep a daily or weekly diary of their class lessons from which it was possible to follow the orderly treatment of the prescribed programme, and to gain a general idea of the attainments of the class as a whole. Now that the class has ceased for many purposes to be the unit of training, and classes are divided into groups for various purposes while children spend a considerable proportion of their school time in individual work, these diaries have declined in value, and experience has shown that something more is wanted. If the teacher is to keep in touch with the personal work of each child under these conditions, some method of recording this work must be devised. A simple form of chart on which the teacher, or the child himself when he is able, can record the completion of a definite step in progress, is all that is necessary. (12)

(b) General records of children's development, etc. In addition, it is important to keep a record for each child containing the salient facts of his mental and physical growth. On this form his attainments and mental development will be entered at the end of each term, or when he is promoted to a new class. In addition, the form should record any facts of importance relating to home conditions, physical disabilities, and peculiarities of temperament. This form should be passed on to the teacher of his new class, and when he enters the upper section of the primary school, it should go with him. The practice of passing on such records already obtains in many schools, and these short notes are not only often of great value to the teacher in the upper stage of primary education, but also assist to smooth for the child the transition from one school to another. In many schools this record takes the form of a card index; but the exact form in which the necessary information is recorded will naturally vary from school to school.

Medical records. The scientific evidence summarised in Chapter 2 shows the great importance of medical records. All children who, though not attending nursery schools or classes, continue their attendance at welfare centres, or who are supervised by health visitors, should have complete medical records which will be continued on their admission to the infant school. We think it important that any salient features of the child's physical development, medical history, and home conditions, should be noted also in the teacher's own records. It is essential, however, that when such records are passed on from teacher to teacher any information of a medical character should be treated as strictly confidential.

COOPERATION BETWEEN PARENTS AND THE SCHOOL

70. A large number of parents' associations have been organised by the teachers in nursery schools and in infant schools. We show in Chapter 5 that in most nursery schools a parents' association forms an integral part of the school.

As a result of effective cooperation between parents, teachers, doctors and school nurses, there has been a marked improvement alike in the health and cleanliness of the children, in the character of their clothing, and in the hygiene of the home. Mothers who belong to a parents' association appreciate advice given by teachers and nurses on the care and upbringing of their children. Our witnesses assured us that in schools where parents' associations have been formed, they are well attended by the mothers, and in some instances also by the fathers. Such associations usually hold meetings once a month, and addresses are frequently given by teachers, school doctors, and other persons who have made a special study of the mental and physical needs of young children. Among the means adopted to stimulate and maintain the interest of the members are working parties, small lending libraries, and visits to other parents' associations. The teachers often devote much time and energy to the organisation of these associations, which create a bond of sympathy not only between the school staff and the mothers, but also between the mothers themselves.

The relations between parents and teachers are peculiarly close in nursery and infant schools. Children are often brought to school by their mothers, and the contacts which not only the teachers but also the doctors and nurses make with parents by means of associations, 'open days', and on the occasion of the medical inspection, are exceptionally numerous and intimate. The character of the school as a social institution, and not merely as a place of instruction, finds expression in this active cooperation and the sharing of common interests. (13)

GRANT REGULATIONS

71. Nursery schools are legally distinct from public elementary schools, and the conditions of grant in respect of them are contained in Chapter 8 of the Special Services Regulations. In the case of nursery schools provided by local education authorities, both capital and revenue expenditure rank for grant; in the case of voluntary nursery schools, revenue expenditure only; in both cases the grant is at the rate of 50 per cent. The grant for nursery schools is wholly calculated on actual expenditure, whereas that for infant schools and departments is partially (sometimes up to about 40 per cent) based on school attendance. Some of our witnesses contended that the expenditure basis of grant assessment, which has been adopted for nursery schools, should be extended to infant schools and departments, on account of the variable character of the school attendance of young children. They considered that under the present system the local education authority was unduly penalised by the accidents of illness and bad weather. The difference in the average attendance for children under the age of seven and over that age is not large, but we think that there is some substance in this criticism, and that the Board of Education might be well advised to make some allowance for the more frequent absences of very young children.

Footnotes

(1) Section 8(4) of the Education Act 1918, re-enacted in Section 46(4)(c) of the Education Act 1921.

(2) This is subject to the proviso that the Board of Education, in considering whether approval shall be given to any such by-law, 'shall have regard to the adequacy of the provision of nursery schools for the area to which the by-law relates'. (See Preliminary pages: Introduction).

(3) See Chapter 5, Section 75.

(4) See Chapter 5 and Chapter 8.

(5) See Report on The Primary School, Sections 53, 55, 58 and 63.

(6) We use the term 'school' or 'department' to mean an educational unit, usually consisting of three or more classes, which is under a separate head teacher.

(7) In one large urban area primary schools for children between the ages of five and eleven have been established alongside a system of separate infant schools.

(8) Chapter 7, Section 107.

(9) We use the term division to mean an infant group consisting of more than one class, which is not under a separate head teacher. Although an infant division thus forms part of a larger unit, the principal teacher will necessarily be certificated, and her post will be one of special responsibility. (See Chapter 7, Section 107).

(10) Section 99.

(11) The head teacher of a large infant school in a midland town describes an open-air section for children between the ages of five and six as follows: 'The authority has recently provided a room with folding windows on three sides. It accommodates 36 children specially selected from all sections of the school who are retarded for various reasons. This arrangement is of great use since not only do these children benefit by individual special treatment, but the several class teachers are relieved of those backward scholars for whom they are unable to spare adequate attention in teaching their large classes. In this open-air section the timetable and routine are different from that in ordinary school life, individual work is done and the older children talk to and help the younger children. Drill and singing games are taken out of doors every morning and there is a musical lesson in the open air every afternoon. The sessions are short and many of the children rest for an hour each afternoon. They concentrate on reading, writing and composition (oral and written) and omit all arithmetic until their reading is fluent. The furniture consists of small tables, chairs and boxes and the underlying idea of this open-air section is to get at and to influence the individual child. The children from this class meet for assembly with the other children once a week and enjoy 'breaks' with their schoolfellows and also enter for all inter-class singing competitions.'

(12) See also Chapter 6, Section 102.

(13) Dr Arnold Gesell, Professor of Child Hygiene and Director of the Clinic of Child Development at Yale University, told us that in the United States of America it has been realised more and more that in order to remedy and obviate some of the causes of mental retardation in young children, the approach must be made largely through the adult rather than by means of institutional treatment for the individual child. Provision for adult education in the pre-school care and training of young children is now being made in many quarters in the United States. In addition to the establishment of numerous infant welfare centres, facilities for the education of adults in this branch are provided by means of courses of lectures, home economic classes, and conferences for parents.