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Secondary Schools.Early Twentieth Century

• Message 1.Β 

  Posted by Amphion (U3338999) on Thursday, 28th February 2008

  Whilst recently descussing Local History with a teacher friend, it suddenly occured to me how little thought I had given to the School system of the early Twentieth Century. Especially, the working class school's. For example, I hadn't considered that as many children would have possibly started work at the age of 12, then it was unlikely that Working Class education involved the two school system which is now the norm. I would imagine most schools catered for pupils of all ages. (I have this vision of 'Cider with Rosie' in my mind, whilst I type these words, especially the schools). Although I sometimes wonder if maybe we have been over influenced by Dickens, with our image of school life in Britain 100 years ago!
  
  I know that to a certain extent, the Municipal Council took education of Children seriously, employing Truant officers as early as the First World War. Many Magistrate hearing from 1914 I found have been dominated by parents actually arguing the case that their child was beter off in full time employment, than 'sitting in the school-house, idlin' away the hours.'
  
  I've also found evidence from 1915, that Evening Classes were very popular,(although expensive). Many Women being offered classes in 'Office Etiquette.' as at that time there weren't many 'female secretary's' about. Of course, from about August 1914, classes in German language vertually died out, whereas French suddenly became popular.
  
  ...Anyway, does anybody have any information with regards to Schooling in the early Twentieth Century? I can imagine a calss full of working class girls being taught to embroider, along with the three Rrr's. But what about the boys?
  Would there have been a curiculum,etc.?
  
  Any ideas???
  
  

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  Posted by JB (U569100) on Thursday, 28th February 2008

  There was free universal elementary education for all children aged 5 to 11 between the wars, with patchy additional provision up to the school leaving age of 14.
  
  There were secondary schools, also called grammar schools, which charged fees and taught an academic curriculum. Bright children from poor homes could take a scholarship test which might gain them a place in one paid for by their local authority, but the number of these places varied from area to area. (And the children of the better off were admitted regardless of intelligence or ability if their parents paid.)
  
  There was also some 'post=primary' provision in the elementary schools, all of which was recognised as entirely inadequate from 1926 onwards, but successive govts. felt they could not afford to improve provision until RA Butler pushed through the 44 Act during the war.
  
  In the Grammar schools there was a sort of National Curriculum called the Revised Code of 1902 which laid down a set of familiar subjects without prescribing content.
  
  The only innovation in the Revised Code compared with the example of the prestigious Public (i.e, private) Schools was the introduction of the controversial new subject of English, which suffered since it was so new there were no teachers qualified to deliver it in the first instance. The tasks fell to the Classics masters, who taught English as if it were Latin and so instilled in a generation to come an unshakable belief in all manner of 'rules' that were never more than conventions at best.
  
  The 44 Act re-designated the elementary schools as primary schools and required that there should be 'secondary' schools for all to age 14 (later 15 under Labour Education Minsiter Ellen Wilkinson in 1947,) although what precisely was meant by 'secondary' was never properly defined.
  

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  Posted by Grumpyfred (U2228930) on Thursday, 28th February 2008

  Is this really a subject for Wars and conflicts? I know we had some right royal battles in the playground, but!!!!!

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