Figure 1.-- .
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Figure 1.-- . |
The prep school children are organized into forms on the basis of their age and academic abilities. Many also have pre-preps which deal with the younger children before they actually begin prep school work. Usually the forms run from I through VI, although this varies somewhat from school to school. Generally the schools academic program is organized into age/ability groups from form I (the youngest) to the form V (the oldest). Form VI is often reserved for particularly gifted children preparing for scholarships. Many schools divide the school into junior and senior departments. Some schools divide the school into three sections. While names may vary, the basic divisions are fairly standard among prep schools. There are some differences as to placement. The most important difference is attitude toward streaming.
Generally the schools academic program is organized into age/ability groups from form I (the youngest) to the form V (the oldest). . Form VI is often reserved for particularly gifted children preparing for scholarships. Many schools divide the school into junior and senior departments. Some schools (such as Cheltenham College Junior School and Gayhurst) divide the school into three sections.
Children entering the school, usually at 7 or 8, begin in the lower school. Some schools may include some of the older children in their pre-prep in the lower school. At many schools this lower or junior department is run as a separate section of the school, in many cases with their own classroom wing. The children spend most of the day in their formroom with a single teacher, usually a female teacher specializing with this age group. As Oakley Hall explains, “the youngest boys are taught by Governesses till they are ready to pass : on to the masters.” The curriculum concentrates heavily on a core sylubus emphasizing the basic skills of literacy and numeracy. Great care is given to ensure that the children read fluently. Practical work is designed to help develop understanding of basic maths. The form teacher explores a variety of other subjects to stimulate interest in the total environment, including geography, history, and nature to increase awarness of the environment and world. Work in art, handiwork, and music encourage self-expression. The children pass on the the middle school at about 9 years, although some flexibility is generally made for individual differences. Schools divided into only two sections (lower and senior) often move the children to the senior school at about age 10˝.
The children often pass on to the middle school at about age 9 years. The children begin to attend specialized subject classes rather than receiving all subjects in their form room. More of the courses are taught by masters. At this stage work for the CEE is begun in earnest. Many schools begin to stream at this stage, providing a separate scholarship stream for the most able children. The basic curriculum still consists mostly of English and maths, but courses include history, geography, scripture, art, music, and physical education. Many schools introduce French and Latin in the middle school.
The upper school is for children from about 11˝-13˝. The senior school children continue the same subjects begun in middle school and begin the syllabus for the Common Entrance and Public Schools’ Scholarships Examinations. The process of stretching, widening of interests and presenting the children work of increasing difficulty and sophistication is continued. In some schools the older children preparing to leave sit the CEE in form V and form VI is reserved for particularly bright children preparing for a scholarship exam. In other schools the leavers are all grouped in form VI, although if the school is large enough there may be an upper VIth to prepare for scholarship exams. At some schools clever children may be encouraged to move rapidly to form IV and thus gain a year to attempt the extra work required by the scholarship syllabus. Children as young as 11˝ may enter the upper VIth for scholarship preparation. One headmaster told us that a child needs an IQ of at least 160 if he is to have a good chance at a scholarship at a major public school. Capable children with lesser IQs are often encouraged to attempt the work in the scholarship form even if it does not result in obtaining an award. Moor Park, for example, tells parents that “We believe that it is better to have been a scholarship candidate, even one who has failed to obtain an award, than a good Common Entrance candidate: the work for scholarship is not only more challenging but more stimulating and interesting ...."
The form arrangements are not standard throughout England. A few schools have a variety of different arrangements. Grosvenor School has, for example, has nine forms, but this includes the pre-prep children. The younger children begin form IX at 4+ and finish in form I. Several schools (Hailleybury Junior School, Kings College Junior School, and Mowden Hall) have eleven forms. At Hailleybury Junior School the boys begin in form IX at 7 or 8 years of age and progress toward the Common Entrance and Scholarship forms. At Hordle House the younger children enter in form V at about8 and Upper I is the top form. At Netherwood School the prep school section of the school begins with Form 4 at about 7 and continues through Upper 3. Many preparatory schools also have preparatory department and some are associated or formally part of senior schools offering secondary education.
Schools generally promote the children from form to form on the basis of achievement rather than age. Most boys stays 2-3 terms in each form. Few boys spend less than 2-3 terms in a form.
. Many schools more or less make promotions from form to form routinely at the end of the school year. Promotion is not
automatic, however, and occasionally the staff may conclude it is in V a boys interest to repeat a year. For those requiring more time consideration may be given to a “remove.” [Patrick: What does remove mean?] The normal form structure may be changed for specific classes. Form groupings, for example, are often changed somewhat for language classes. ~
Many schools have special names for the different forms. St. Ronan’s, for example, provided the following report on the term’s work in each form:
Schol: An improved class in every way and the term was crowned by Nourse’s Eton Scholarship, and Mylne’s award at Reeds, backed up by V good Common Entrance results from the other leavers. A mature lead from the younger members will be necessary next term if we are to V have success in 1984.
Midway 1: Everyone worked hard for Common Entrance and gained ~ the success he deserved. Piper secured first place with a surge in exams.
Midway 2: After a poor start when too much pressure was needed to make them work this form then began to produce results up to their ability and should set a fast pace next term. Neve and Bicknell finished well ahead.
IA: A keen, hard working class who made steady progress and was a pleasure to teach. Parish retained his position and Burrough has a splendid first term in IA. We shall miss Turner’s cheerful figure about the school and shall be short of weight in the rugger scrum!
Shell: There was enough competition at the top to raise the whole standard of Shell and Nevill worked most successfully to finish in first place.
IB(A): A form who improved all the term with the most restless members being pulled on by the enthusiasm of the most gifted. Wallace’s English enabled him to wrest first place.
IB(B) : A good lead from the top enabled a class with a mixed range of knowledge to keep working as a unit, and Rodgers finished with a splendid mark.
Policies concerning ability grouping vary widely. Educational research offers no definitive conclusions concerning the effectiveness of streaming. The larger schools with more than one class in each form often stream the children and place the scholarship children together where they receive a more rigorous academic program. Usually the streaming does not constitute an unalterable ,~ assignment. The schools are small enough that shifts can usually be dealt with limited disruption. Boundary Oaks in Hampshire, for example, assures parents that the “A” and “B” streams follow a similar syllabus so that transfers can be easily arranged. Mouden Hall and many other schools organize the streams so that the children can easily be transferred without any great difficulty. Some schools, such as Bramcote in Nottinghamshire and Caldicott in Bucks, begin . streaming with the new entrants.
Hazelgrove House has an “A” and “B” stream. The “A” stream reaches the VI form more quickly to prepare for the scholarship exam while the “B” stream works steadily for the CEE when they reach 13. Clifton College teaches in sets to ensure boys work with others of similar abilities. Other schools (such as Caterham, Colston’s, Kingsmead, Ranby House ) teach the younger children without regards to ability grouping, but often begin streaming during the Third or Fourth Form into a Common Entrance stream and a Scholarship stream or pursue some other grouping by academic ~ skills. Kingsmead has three parallel forms (5, A, and B) and reports there is considerable movement from one form to the other. Some courses are taught in sets so that a child who is particularly competent in any given subject can be placed in the set appropriate to his abilities in that specific subject. Often boys of average ability choose to take the CEE in the Fifth Form. Other schools do not generally stream, but instead believe that they can deal adequately with individual differences through the small size classes that afford great scope for individual attention. Many schools,. including schools like Dumpton which do not stream, reserve the Sixth Form for especially gifted children working for scholarships. Holmwood in Merseyside uses a form of vertical streaming so that boys regardless of age “find their own academic level.” Marsh Court pursues a similar approaching, believing that “age is no obstacle to progress. The children are moved through the school as they master the work of each form. Particularly gifted children will reach the upper VIth quicker and have more time to prepare for a scholarship exam. St. John’s Beaumont in the last 3 years may split classes into small sets when this is desirable.
Schools also vary as to the extent of instruction from a form teacher and a specialty subject teacher. The younger children usually spend most of their day in their form room where they receive their basic academic work (English and maths). The older children are more likely to move to specialty classes, especially for classes such as science and foreign language. Even the younger children may use some of these specialty classes for subjects like art and music.
