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 8 Premises and equipment of infant and nursery schools
[pages 159 - 172]

HISTORICAL NOTE BEARING ON SCHOOL BUILDINGS FOR YOUNG CHILDREN

111. In view of the fact that school buildings of an early type are still in use for the education of young children in many parts of the country, it is of some interest to trace briefly the development of school planning. The earliest kind of school building usually had one large oblong-shaped schoolroom, its windows about six feet from the floor. The floor itself inclined slightly from the master's desk to the opposite end of the room, or ended in a gallery. The design was usually ecclesiastical in character, of a type reminiscent of the Gothic revival, with stone-mullioned or iron-framed windows glazed with diamond-shaped panes. Even as late as 1870 the ordinary school buildings had not evolved beyond the simple type which consisted of a main schoolroom sufficiently large to accommodate nearly all the pupils, together with one or possibly two classrooms, provided in most instances with a gallery. The main room was usually divided into compartments by movable screens or curtains, and in one or more of these compartments some of the younger children were taught by pupil teachers or monitors.

In 1871 the Committee of Council on Education issued a set of rules to be observed in the planning and fitting up of schools. These rules contained model plans for schools of different sizes. The general type showed a long, narrow main room, or, where the number of children to be accommodated was large, an L-shaped room, so arranged that the head teacher standing at the angle could readily supervise both wings. There was usually one classroom for each department. As we have pointed out in Chapter 1, the Building Regulations of the Education Department and contemporary works on school architecture accepted as axiomatic the distinction between the infant school and the 'graded school' with its six standards. For instance, the rules to be observed in planning and fitting up schools issued by the Committee of Council on Education in 1871 stated that infants should never be taught in the same room with older children, and this provision reappears in a more explicit form in later issues of these rules down to the first decade of the present century.

In 1871 the newly constituted London School Board, after long consideration and an inspection of school buildings in Prussia, decided to build a school with separate classrooms each for 80 children under separate teachers, together with a general schoolroom or central hall, which would be available for one class. The Ben Jonson School was built on this principle at Stepney in 1872. The new design, which was applied in the Ben Jonson School only to the departments for older boys and girls, did not at first meet with success, although it was the prototype of the popular 'central hall' school. At that time, the central hall was held to be of little practical value, and the series of separate classrooms proved to be unsuitable for the system of teaching then in vogue. In general the type of plan providing a large schoolroom with long narrow rooms in which several classes could be placed, held the field. The consequence was that large numbers of school buildings of this kind were erected all over England and Wales by the new school boards and by managers of voluntary schools. The type, which is peculiar to this country, was devised to meet the pupil-teacher system of the day; but, as the number of qualified teachers increased, the demand for separate classrooms became more apparent, and led about the year 1881 to the 'central hall' school described above, with a separate classroom for each class; and this became the generally accepted model till after the passing of the Education Act of 1902.

The establishment by that Act of local education authorities responsible for schools over large areas, and the subsequent appointment of salaried school architects and medical officers, soon led to systematic investigations into problems of lighting and hygienic conditions in schools. The central hall type of school was superseded by the 'spread-out' single-storeyed building with all the rooms cross-ventilated into the open air, and with a hall centrally or conveniently placed but isolated from the classrooms. This was evolved under medical influence from the 'special schools' built for ailing children, and it lent itself readily to adaptation as a complete 'open air' school, by which is usually meant a building that opens fully on at least two sides, with a veranda. The first school cross-ventilated and with a separate hall was built in 1905, about the same time as the first experimental open-air remedial school was opened at Charlottenburg, and gradually in a number of different types it influenced the designs for public elementary schools in general. Such premises are more closely suited to the requirements of young children than were schools of the older kind.

EXISTING SCHOOL PREMISES FOR CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF SEVEN

112. This brief summary of the history of school design in England and Wales shows that the infant school has in the past been regarded as differing from the school for older children only in the age of the children for whom provision had to be made. We have already pointed out that a sedentary life is exceedingly unnatural for children of infant school age, and that freedom for movement and opportunities for exploring the world through the senses are the prime requisites for the growing child. One of our witnesses has said, 'the ideal infant school is not a classroom but a playground, that is to say, not a limited space enclosed by four walls and a ceiling, but an open area ... where the interests natural to this biological stage of growth can be stimulated and pursued'.

This is a hard saying, and particularly hard when we apply it to the school in a crowded or built-up area, though Margaret McMillan has shown how it can be attempted in so difficult a district as Deptford. The two-decker or three-decker schools of London and other large cities, designed to economise in the cost of site, impose a terrible handicap on the infant department. Compelled by regulation to occupy the ground floor, the younger children are deprived of their proper share of light, air and quiet, while the plan of the department is necessarily governed by the plan of the upper floors. Even in schools of a later type, the plan of the building was much the same for infants as for older children; the hall indeed was replaced by a smaller playroom; but the only real difference was in the height of the window sills and in the lighting, which was adapted to the grouping of children round tables rather than in serried rows of desks.

Although, as we have seen, the general planning on 'open air' principles has now resulted in schools that are more closely adapted to the needs of little children, the fact remains that the design of the ordinary infant school is not yet in complete harmony with modern opinion regarding its function and activities. The evidence indicates that local education authorities realise the important part which is played by the premises, the equipment, and, above all, the precincts of the school, in the physical and mental development of children below the age of seven. We hope that they will keep in mind the radical change of attitude towards the requirements of infant education which is implied in the passage we have quoted above, and will regard it as an ideal to be ensued, both in the adaptation of old buildings and in the construction of new schools, so far as local conditions will allow.

THE NEED FOR ADEQUATE SPACE IN INFANT SCHOOLS

113. The earlier Codes regulated the floor space in an infant school according to the size of the desk. Before 1 January 1890, the floor space of rooms used for teaching was reckoned at a minimum of 8 square feet [0.72m²] per child (1); on that date the minimum for new and altered buildings was raised to 9 square feet [0.81m²]; and in 1925 to 10 square feet [0.9m²], which is the requirement at present in force, although the former allowance of 9 square feet for each younger child still obtains in many infant classrooms erected before 1925.

Nearly all our witnesses emphasised the need for a revision of the present basic allowance for assessing the accommodation of infant schools and departments. The need for more physical activity on the part of children and for individual attention on the part of the teacher, and the modern practice of teaching and training young children in smaller groups, justifies a more generous allowance of floor space for infants than for children in primary schools between the ages of seven and eleven. Moreover, the replacement of fixed desks by tables and chairs, and the more liberal supply of storage cupboards which have become usual in infant classrooms, have reduced the free floor space; it is common experience that the basic allowance is inadequate where rooms have to be used for the midday sleep of the youngest children.

It was repeatedly pointed out by our witnesses that in many infant school buildings there is an increasing amount of surplus accommodation owing to the declining birth rate, to the reorganisation of schools, and in many parts of the country to the movement of population. Two lines of policy for using this surplus accommodation, which in some cases may be alternative, accordingly present themselves to the local education authority: (a) the provision of more adequate accommodation for children between the ages of five and seven; (b) the utilisation of vacant floor space for nursery classes.

OTHER GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF SEVEN

114. (i) The type of garden playground which we have already mentioned is essential to the education of young children as we conceive it. In all new infant schools and departments, a separate playing space should be provided. Where, as in old buildings or on existing sites, this is impossible, the playground should be reserved at stated times for the younger children. (2) It is most important that the younger children should not be deprived of their 'play', or be crowded into corners or forced out of the way, owing to the continuous use of the playground for drill and games by others. The playground should be placed preferably on the sunny side of the building; if this brings it directly under the classroom windows, a flower garden may be interposed. The uses of such a garden are discussed in Chapter 6. (3) If there is insufficient space for a garden, the margins of the playground may be laid out in beds for flowers, plants and shrubs. Where practicable, part of the playing space for infants should be a grass plot.

(ii) In new buildings the sanitary arrangements as well as the lavatories should be placed within the school, for the sole use of the infants. Otherwise the training of young children is hampered, and the care and supervision of offices and lavatories is made difficult. The school lavatories should be provided with an adequate supply of hot water, and 'safety' taps should be fitted in the system.

(iii) The planning of the offices, lavatories, cloakrooms, store cupboards, and shelves in infant schools, and the height of dados and door handles, should be governed by the needs of the smaller children. Special regard should be paid to this in remodelling old school buildings, originally designed for older children.

(iv) The amount of educational apparatus now required for the training of young children necessitates a more generous provision of storage space than was usual in the older type of infant school, and also a different type of cupboard for the children's use.

(v) In all school buildings designed for young children it is desirable to provide a small kitchen.

(vi) Suitable drying rails should be placed in the lavatory attached to the cloakroom, or preferably in a separate drying closet. Storage for overalls, brushes, and other personal belongings may be provided in the cloakroom, the slippers being kept in racks below the cloak rails. A space of 18 inches between each cloak hook should be insisted upon, at least in new buildings.

(vii) The internal decoration of schools for young children has been a subject of many recent experiments. The general opinion of our witnesses was that fresh harmonious colours had a marked effect on the spirits and general tone of the children, and were preferable to the monotonous dark green or dark hard-wearing red which has been almost traditional up to recent years. It is, however, doubtful whether too elaborate a colour scheme in any room is advisable; it is liable to clash with the bright pictures that are now so striking a feature in many infant classrooms. By the time that the pin-rails for children's work are installed, the pictures hung, the cupboards placed in position, and the wall blackboards fixed, any colour scheme becomes fragmentary. A 'sunshine' colour over walling, with as bright a dado as possible, is preferable to a more elaborate scheme of decoration. The practical knowledge and experience of the architects as to the wearing qualities of colours and their surface finish should be brought into account, as well as the artistic and educational value of any proposed colour scheme for the rooms. We accordingly suggest that the local education authority might be well advised to form a reference committee consisting of teachers (including art teachers) and representatives of the architect's department.

ADAPTATION OF OLD SCHOOL BUILDINGS

115. Old school premises in which floor space is available may be remodelled by a resourceful architect for the education of young children, though the result may not conform completely to the most modern standards. In adaptations of this character, it should be possible to find a portion of the building which can be reconditioned for the purpose of a nursery class. As a rule, in existing urban school premises, there will already be rooms large enough to provide the ample space that is required for the nursery playroom, and also rooms which, although too small for use as classrooms, can be readily utilised for special cloakrooms, lavatories, and kitchens. The provision of suitable indoor offices, either by internal reconstruction or by adding a sanitary annexe, is possible where there is a regular supply of water and an adequate system of drainage.

In country schools the problem facing the local education authority will be to use the available space to the best advantage, and to brighten gloomy classrooms by admitting more fresh air and sunshine. The window heads should be carried up well into the height of the rooms and the sills cut down low enough for small children. Some of the windows might be cut down nearly to the floor level and so form exits to the garden. When the whole of one side of a classroom is made to open in the form of collapsible sliding partitions, french windows, or glazed windows opening in 'stable door' fashion, it is important to provide ventilating lights above a transom bar.

The heating, lavatory and sanitary arrangements should be assimilated to those of new school buildings so far as the conditions will allow.

THE PLANNING AND ARRANGEMENT OF NEW INFANT SCHOOLS

116. Young children should spend their school hours as much as possible in the open air. The fundamental importance of this, and its intimate relation to all modern conceptions of infant education, we have already emphasised in Section 112. Yet, in urban areas, if the schools are to be near the homes of the children, the choice of site is often restricted. Where a choice is offered, the conditions are that the site should be as open and as sunny as possible, reasonably quiet, fronting on to a side road, and, above all, that it should be large enough to provide an open area which will serve as garden and playground. As regards the building itself, the architect's problem will be to ensure that there shall be really adequate cross ventilation throughout, and ample sunlight for every room during the morning hours. The essential conditions of fresh air, sunshine and light, will best be secured by what may be described as semi-open-air buildings, provided with open verandas, and with windows which extend from the floor to the ceiling on one or even on two or more sides of the classrooms. Teachers should, however, realise that the temperature, lighting, and movement of air that are most comfortable for adults may sometimes not be the most suitable for young children. (4)

Numerous experiments have been conducted in the use of different materials for the construction of school buildings. 'Semi-permanent' buildings of light construction have been recognised by the Board of Education as part of the permanent school supply; and such buildings, if approved, are exempt from the necessity of conforming to local building by-laws. Many of the difficulties which are at present experienced by teachers in training and teaching very young children are largely due to the limitations of old buildings which are too solid to wear out. Lightness of construction, therefore, is to be commended, whatever methods be adopted. As an example of methods alternative to the usual brick or stone, it may be mentioned that timber frame buildings erected on brick or concrete foundations and treated with preservatives will under normal conditions have a useful life of from thirty to fifty years and have not in practice been found unduly expensive to maintain. Provided that such buildings are properly constructed, they may be made as comfortable for general use as other types of structure, but they must have plenty of suitable exits for use in case of fire. There should not be any substantial modification of the ordinary arrangements for the provision of heat and light in a building of light construction. The offices, however, should be in brick work. On the whole, it seems that despite the somewhat higher annual maintenance charges, the less solid types of structure, in addition to being more economical in initial cost, may be found more adaptable to future changes in the methods of training and teaching young children.

In addition to classrooms, staffrooms, store rooms, and cloakrooms, a new infant school should contain a hall which will be used more as a playroom than for purposes of assembly. It should, however, be large enough for the assembly of all the children when required. A small kitchen should be provided. Indoor lavatories and offices are essential. It is desirable also that the youngest children should have direct access to their room through a cloakroom devoted exclusively to their use.

Finally, in the planning of new infant schools, the other general requirements for children below the age of seven which we have mentioned in Sections 113 and 114, especially adequate floor space, storage for personal belongings and educational apparatus, and the suggestions which we have made as to the internal decoration of schools, should engage the close attention of the architect.

ROOMS FOR NURSERY CLASSES IN INFANT SCHOOLS

117. In the following section we describe in some detail premises for nursery schools. These details are equally applicable to nursery classes, in so far as the general plan of the main school building allows of their adoption. Thus the planning of a nursery school in separate sections, which we there mention, will also be suitable for nursery classes. Even in floor space there is no great difference between the requirements of each type. Some of our witnesses held that 20 square feet [1.8m²] per child was the minimum area which children in a nursery class needed; the majority, however, considered that 15 square feet [1.35m²] for each child would be sufficient. Our witnesses, however insisted that the floor space in each classroom should allow of the children sleeping indoors on stretcher beds. In these and other respects the rooms for nursery classes conform to nursery school conditions.

PREMISES FOR NURSERY SCHOOLS

118. Infant and nursery schools have been regarded as two entirely different types of building. Provision has been made for both types, mainly in new buildings, but sometimes in adapted premises. Up to the present the number of nursery schools erected has been too small and of too varied a character to enable a fair average cost to be quoted, but it is clear that the nursery school has in the past generally cost considerably more per place than the infant school. (5) In the actual character of the buildings, however, there would appear to be no justification for any substantial difference in the cost per head of these two kinds of school. Any such difference will be due mainly to the smaller size of nursery schools, to the greater floor space hitherto provided, and to the additional amenities requisite in buildings in which children remain for the whole of the day. In small schools such additional amenities add disproportionately to the unit cost.

Though the number of separate nursery schools is comparatively small, there has, nevertheless, been considerable experiment in recent years in the types of building erected. In some instances satisfactory results have been obtained by adapting an existing dwelling house or houses for the use of children under the age of five, especially where such houses have some garden space. The size of existing nursery schools varies widely. Probably the most economical school to build, and one which in other respects is the most suitable, is the nursery school for about 160 children, which allows in its classrooms at least 15 square feet [1.35m²] of floor space for each pupil. Nursery schools in the first instance will be required in congested slum areas, (6) and the choice of sites reasonably accessible to the homes of the children may not be easy. Where such a choice is possible, the site should be large enough to allow for classrooms to face south east or south, with a free circulation of air, and to allow for flower beds, and for outdoor recreation. Nursery schools have been built on as little as one eighth of an acre [0.05 hectare], and on as much as three quarters of an acre [0.3 hectare], but in general a desirable minimum is half an acre [0.2 hectare] for 160 children. In very congested areas, roof garden sites have been found practicable so long as adequate precautions are taken for safety in case of fire, and access is reasonably convenient.

The nursery school building should not be 'institutional' in character, but as far as possible of a light and open 'garden pavilion' type. (7) It will consist of a number of class (or play) rooms, rooms for the staff, a room for observation and medical treatment, a kitchen, lavatories and offices. The ideal school is the light single storey building of the open-air type set in a garden playground; the playground is centrally placed between the classrooms and the administration block, the latter usually being in the rear facing north or north west. The class (or play) rooms may be arranged as separate shelters or as twin rooms divided by a party wall like semi-detached villas. (8) Such a design will enable three sides of every room to be thrown entirely open, either by means of sliding partitions or by means of openings of the 'stable-door' or french window type. Height is not of much importance in open-air rooms. Floor heating is convenient but somewhat expensive. Panel heating in the walls or ceilings, or both, has been tried with success, and slow combustion stoves, gas fires, electric heating (9) or even open fires are possibilities.

INTERNAL MOVABLE EQUIPMENT

119. Infant schools. The requirements of the modern infant school in the matter of movable equipment, educational apparatus and consumable material, are in general well known, and we need make no more than a passing reference to them. Fixed desks have generally given place to light tables and chairs, graded in height.

Nursery classes and nursery schools. Those of our witnesses who had a first-hand knowledge of nursery schools and classes informed us that the equipment for training and teaching children under the age of five can, in the main, be of a simple character, provided always that the floor space is sufficient to allow for free activities. In addition to small tables and chairs, folding stretcher beds of light metal or wood are indispensable. The teaching equipment will consist normally of picture books, apparatus for sense training, plastic material for handwork, dolls and dolls' houses, railways, rocking horses (not too large) and other toys, bricks of different types, beads and abaci. A piano and some instruments of percussion will also be required. In the playground and garden there will be balancing boards, swings, small wheelbarrows, and small garden tools. Gymnastic or other apparatus in the use of which the children might overstrain or hurt themselves should be avoided. There will be special arrangements for meals and for personal hygiene. The problem of the supply of towels (unless paper towels are used), and of other requirements, such as overalls, slippers, and brushes, can in many cases best be solved by the voluntary cooperation of the parents. (10) The medical room should be furnished with such equipment (including apparatus for weighing and recording the height of the children) as the doctor and nurse may require.

SCHOOL MAINTENANCE

120. Diligent and conscientious caretaking contributes much to the health and habits of the children in all types of school. In infant and nursery schools the thorough and frequent cleansing of the cloakrooms and offices, and of the floors, walls and furniture in the classrooms has a particular importance; and special care should be exercised in the selection of school 'caretakers' and in the organisation of their duties.

BOOKS FOR INFANT SCHOOLS

121. Our witnesses urged the importance of supplying the infant school with suitable books, including picture books, story books, and the 'work' type of reading book.

One head teacher writes: 'The greatest handicap in the infant school is often the lack of an adequate supply of books ... I should like to emphasise the value of an infants' library, both for children below the age of five and children over that age. The lack of suitable story books and pictures limits the child's imagination, especially when the home environment is unfavourable.' Another head teacher writes: 'The use of a small lending library, consisting of picture books and supplementary readers, serves to help and encourage the child, and gives the parent an opportunity of ascertaining the capabilities of their children in reading, and suggests to them the kind of reading matter that is appropriate. The help and interest of parents and older brothers and sisters may often be enlisted in this way.'

In Chapter 2, Section 24, of our report on Books in Public Elementary Schools (1928), we urged that infant departments should be adequately equipped with the following types of books: (a) picture books; (b) the 'work' type of reading book; (c) story books.

It may be of interest to summarise briefly this passage of the report:

(a) Picture books. A good supply of picture books is essential, since children must learn the names of things before they learn to read those names. Such books should include pictures of things with which the children are familiar, and also pictures of what is outside their immediate experience. The pictures should be clear and simple in treatment, and should as a rule be coloured, though the less realistic black and white illustration has an educational value of its own.

(b) The 'work' type of reading book. Young children realise the practical value of reading by interpreting written instructions, which should be concerned with things to do or to make. Pictures to paint or to cut out, together with printed directions, are published in book form, but many teachers prefer to make their own sets, and in such cases the necessary material should be provided.

(c) Story books. The interest of a continuous narrative offers a strong inducement to children to learn to read, and they are soon ready to enjoy the complete story book. The best introduction to the use of a library in later life is a table in the corner of the classroom, from which each child may choose its reading book. Nature stories, fairy tales, stories of heroes, stories of how other children live, should be included in such a collection, and each book should be complete in itself and of reasonable length. The books should be well printed and illustrated, and should be so well written that the children will be attracted to read them again and again.

VISUAL AND AUDITORY AIDS FOR TEACHING

122. Pictorial illustration is essential for young children to ensure any clear mental conception of many of the terms with which they will meet in the course of their lessons or reading, and equipment for this purpose should be generously supplied in the infant school. This equipment should include not only a number of appropriate pictures on the walls of the classrooms, but also a liberal supply of small pictures or illustrations for group or individual use.

The piano has long been regarded as an important part of the equipment of an infant school, and to this must now be added the gramophone. In addition to its value in habituating children to hear simple but beautiful music finely rendered, and thus in leading them to understand and to love music, the gramophone is of real use in dancing and rhythmical work in relieving the teacher from the piano and setting her free to concentrate on the movements of the class.

Footnotes

(1) Among the conditions for grant to public elementary schools specified in Article 17 of the new Code of 1871, is the following (Article 17 (c)): 'The School premises are healthy ... and contain in the principal schoolroom at least 80 cubical feet of internal space, and in the schoolroom and classrooms at least 8 square feet of area for each child in average attendance.'

(2) It is of interest to note that Section 21(b) of the Code of Regulations for Public Elementary Schools (1926) runs as follows: 'The recreation period for classes in which the majority of the children are under five years of age must be fifteen minutes and may be extended to half an hour, and for other classes must be ten minutes. Further recreation must not be reckoned as part of the secular instruction.'

(3) Chapter 6, Section 90.

(4) See Chapter 2, Section 43.

(5) Exclusive of the cost of site, furniture and equipment, and of architect's fees, the cost of nursery schools in new buildings, of which plans have been submitted to the Board of Education during the last few years, has ranged between £30 and £50 per head, the lower limit being attained in those nursery schools which provide accommodation for 160 children and upwards. The cost of infant schools at the present time (with normal construction) is about £26 per place.

(6) See Chapter 5, Sections 80 and 81.

(7) See also Chapter 5, Section 75.

(8) The shelters at the Rachel McMillan Nursery School, Deptford, are self-contained, and in addition to space for play and other activities each shelter includes a bathroom, lavatory, and offices.

(9) Experience has shown that at the present rates at which power for heating can be obtained, electricity can hardly be regarded as an economical possibility, but it is hoped that development of the public supplies will make it so in the not distant future.

(10) See Chapter 4, Section 70.