Secondary teachers 'should start teaching pupils earlier'

Secondary teachers should begin teaching pupils first year pupils a half-term earlier, it has been claimed.

New research from Bristol University and the Quartet Community Foundation has suggested that a June start would benefit pupils by allowing them more time to adapt to the demands of secondary schooling.

Professor Rosamund Sutherland, professor of education at Bristol University, told the Telegraph: "Normally, the long summer break exacerbates the dip.

"If they moved on after the half-term holiday […] they would have the chance to get a head start with secondary school before that long break, meaning the transition would not be quite so scary."

She added that many 11-year-olds lack the "emotional resilience" to cope the transition between school levels, and adjust to changes such as bigger classes and mixed timetables.

The Quartet Community Foundation is based in Bristol and is responsible for the management of more then 130 charitable funds.



Published On 27/01/2010