Figure 1.--This cabinet card shows a class in an unidentified Birmingham school, we think during in the 1890s. It looks like some kind of pre-school to us. The portrait is undated, but the ladies' dresses suggest the 1890s. The children look to be about 3-5 years old. Notice all the pinafores. Except for one child the look to be girls. One child wearing a dress loos like a boys. The studio was the Birmingham Photographic Company.

England was late in establishing a natioal public school system, The Primary School Act of 1870 was the first major step. Therewas still no state pre-schools, but the Act created a state primary system. Primary scholls existed eratlie, but there was no comprehensive state primary school system. The advances made in British education during the decade were mostly in primary education, at the time meaning for children up to 14 years of age or 8 primary forms (grades). This was about the time boys could seek apprenticeships or girls go into service. This was not, however, the school leaving age meaning mandatory attendance age. Many boys by the time they left primary until the advances of the 1890s began were still a little young for apprenticeships. This created the social problem of children, especially the boys, out of school but having difficulty finding suitable employment. These boys were especially vulnerable because they were for the most the least capable academically or the poorest children. Few working-class children were able to pursue secondary education. Working class families found it a challenge to support a child in secondary school. Middle-class children continued their eduction because their families could provide more support.

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Created: 2:11 AM 3/24/2019
Last updated: 2:11 AM 3/24/2019