set 1987: no. 2

In a child's eyes starting school is a rite of passage, associated with increased status. Children even link physical growth with this enhanced status - one boy said, 'I bet I grow a couple of inches.' Starting school is a period of transition and adjustment - a moving from the known to the unknown. The two diary extracts, kept by parents the week before their child started school, show how important parents are in helping their child to navigate these uncertain waters.

These days it is common to hear teachers speak about their concern over a lack of discipline shown by many students. Whether the issue of concern is disruptive behaviour, the defiance of authority, violent behaviour or stealing, is not important. What is important is that many teachers believe that students are harder to handle these days than they were a few generations ago.

This investigation - in 75 maths classes, for 10-year olds, up to 10 visits in each - came to the puzzling conclusion that no matter how much the pupils were encouraged to contribute, or discouraged from contributing, there was no link between that and their marks. Teach with lots of questioning, probing, listening, and debating, or teach with none: test achievement is not affected by that.

Much of our current educational practice is based on the assumption that play is important to children - indeed that it is essential to their growth and development. We also assume that adults, particularly teachers, play an essential role through organising and participating in children's play. But it is revealing to take an objective look at the effects of different types of equipment and different styles of adult participation.