View in EDS

Going Comprehensive: Experience of a British Social Studies Department Head. Occasional Paper 8.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: Going Comprehensive: Experience of a British Social Studies Department Head. Occasional Paper 8.
Authors: Weir, R., State Univ. of New York, Stony Brook. American Historical Association Education Project.
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 7
Publication Date: 1972
Descriptors: Classification, Consolidated Schools, Educational Change, Educational Complexes, High Schools, School Districts, School Organization, Secondary Education, Social Studies
Geographic Terms: United Kingdom (England)
Abstract: Secondary education in the United Kingdom is gradually being reorganized along "comprehensive" lines, although there is still resistance to it. Stemming from the Butler Education Act of 1944, a tripartite secondary system emerged, comprised of the grammar (for superior students), the technical (for average and above average students), and the modern (for average or below average students). After adoption of a bilateral system, omitting the secondary grammar school, the next logical step was toward a comprehensive school with no selection criteria. Feeling that it would destroy academic standards, many educators resisted the change. This occasional paper describes the experiences of a British social studies educator when in 1968, a secondary grammar school merged with a modern school. Separate school sites created some problems for staff and students and destroyed the desired unity. Findings by 1971 indicate that most problems created by split building sites had been met; that teacher changeover from the grammar to comprehensive was somewhat traumatic; that a great deal of experimentation took place and continues; that academic achievement is as high now as it was before integration; and lastly, that the first five years were a challenge to make education more relevant. (SJM)
Entry Date: 1973
Accession Number: ED067333
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:Secondary education in the United Kingdom is gradually being reorganized along "comprehensive" lines, although there is still resistance to it. Stemming from the Butler Education Act of 1944, a tripartite secondary system emerged, comprised of the grammar (for superior students), the technical (for average and above average students), and the modern (for average or below average students). After adoption of a bilateral system, omitting the secondary grammar school, the next logical step was toward a comprehensive school with no selection criteria. Feeling that it would destroy academic standards, many educators resisted the change. This occasional paper describes the experiences of a British social studies educator when in 1968, a secondary grammar school merged with a modern school. Separate school sites created some problems for staff and students and destroyed the desired unity. Findings by 1971 indicate that most problems created by split building sites had been met; that teacher changeover from the grammar to comprehensive was somewhat traumatic; that a great deal of experimentation took place and continues; that academic achievement is as high now as it was before integration; and lastly, that the first five years were a challenge to make education more relevant. (SJM)