Teachers are almost universally agreed that large classes "are exhausting, a cause of frustration, and a reason for failure in basic subjects". Their views about what constitutes a "large" class have changed considerably in recent years, however. The same author quotes figures for England to show that the optimum size ...

We still put children in classes. But we now believe that every child has a right to be taught the things that fit his or her needs, and taught them at the pace and in the manner that fits his or her abilities. These are new responsibilities. The techniques to ...

In both Australia and NZ there has been a great deal of interest in the effects that external examinations have on the subjects taught and the way they are taught in secondary schools. In 1970 Queensland took the plunge, scrapped a final internal exam and introduced internal assessment. How has ...

In the late 1950s programmed learning was set to revolutionise teaching. B. F. Skinner started the movement in 1954 with a provocative paper entitled 'The Science of Learning and the Art of Teaching'.
We are on the threshold of an exciting and revolutionary period, in which the scientific study of ...

As teachers, we should be clear why we are testing. We should not test just because it is always done. Certainly, tests often do help motivate students to work harder. But the results can be discouraging too, if the results are poor.
In fact, the purpose of the test should ...

What can a teacher, faced by the problem of helping immigrant second-language pupils in his or her class, learn from recent research? One important research project has made us aware of the sort of obstacles which books, as well as classroom talk, are throwing in the path of the immigrant ...

Ages, Stages, Classes, Years, Grades, and Systems compared

To read well and widely is a central objective of formal education. People who cannot read are seen to be at a crippling disadvantage, personally, educationally, and vocationally. Public concern is often expressed about standards of reading attainment.

When things go wrong with a child's social behaviour, teachers, psychologists and social workers frequently ask for the parents' help. When children are disruptive in class, when children are repeatedly late for school, when children seem upset or withdrawn, parents are asked to suggest possible causes, to try out new ...

Most teachers assess reading comprehension by asking questions. These questions may be very broad, such as 'What was the story about?' or else very detailed, listed on a worksheet perhaps. Yet why do we ask the kinds of questions we do? How much story understanding do they really get at ...