K I D B R O O K E SCHOOLAN ENGLISH COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL by MARY G. GREEN,London Free secondary education for all children over the age of eleven, suited to their "ages, aptitudes and abilities". This was the most important provision of the Education Act of 1944. This Act, brought before Parliament during a war which had already lasted nearly five years, looked forward to the new world which would come after the end of the war a world in which there would be equality of opportunity for all children, parity of esteem for all types of school. In one sense, of course, the war made such far reaching reforms not only desirable but genuinely desired by the people of this country. The war had stripped life of its frills, had shown people as they were when political, social, religious differences were submerged, if not forgotten; the intrinsic worth of individual men and women had been seen in shared billet, aircraft, gunsite and warship. The moment was well chosen to introduce a measure ensuring that the children of those who had fought and suffered and died together should share equal opportunities at school, equal rights to develop their abilities to the full, equal shares in the privileges of the future. The Act established by law reforms which had been envisaged and discussed for m a n y years. The Spens Report published in 1938, although limited by its terms of reference to a study of the problems and interrelation of schools other than elementary schools, nevertheless gave some thought to the needs of all children over the age of eleven. It considered, though only to reject "with some reluctance", the possibility of multilateral schools. These schools, which would take the place of grammar, modern schools and junior technical schools, would provide all the courses previously offered in the three separate schools. The Report goes on, " I t is a policy which is very attractive: it would secure, in the first place, the close association to their mutual advantage of pupils of more varied ability, and with more varied interests and objectives than are normally found in a school of any one type. Further, pupils could be transferred from an academic to a less academic curriculum without change of school". The advantages, however, were, in the opinion of the Committee, outweighed by the disadvantages: these schools would necessarily be very large; the number in the VI form would be relatively small; the free development of the Secondary Modern 'side' might be hampered by the prestige of the academic 'side'; the technical 'side' would be deprived of the

420

M A R Y G. G R E E N

material resources it now has in a technical college; it would be very difficult to find Heads competent to run such schools. Although the Committee did not recommend the establishment of multilateral schools as a general policy, it considered that some measure of experiment ill this direction might be desirable. And, the Report goes on, "The multilateral idea, though it may not be expressed by means of the multilateral school, should permeate the system of secondary education as we conceive it". In other words, there should be equality of status among all secondary schools; comparable salaries for teachers, comparable buildings and equipment, abolition of fees in all maintained schools, and compulsory education for all children up to the age of sixteen. Three years later, the Norwood Committee states categorically that all children fall neatly into three categories - the academic, the practical, and those "whose mental make-up does not show at an early stage pronounced leanings in a way comparable with the other groups which we indicated". This Committee is, therefore, in favour of providing three types of secondary education, grammar, technical, and modern, each type to have "such parity as amenities and conditions can bestow; parity of esteem in our view cannot be conferred by administrative decree nor by equality of cost per pupil; it can only be won by the school itself". Little attention is paid by this Committee to the possibility of multilateral schools which they consider would be too big for the Head to know the children. The White Paper on "Educational Reconstruction" of 1943, preparing the way for the Act, states that there will be three main types of secondary school, but "it would be wrong to suppose that they will necessarily remain separate and apart. Different types may be combined in one building or on one site as considerations of convenience and efficiency may suggest". The Education Act laid down that every Local Education Authority must prepare and submit to the Minister a "development plan" showing what the authority proposed to do to secure that there should be "sufficient" primary and secondary schools in their area and how they proposed to do it. The London County Council, in its development plan of 1947, going far beyond the tentative suggestions of the Spens report, decided that the future secondary education for London should be provided in comprehensive schools - and the word comprehensive was deliberately chosen in preference to multilateral to emphasise their policy that these schools should be organised as a unified whole and not in separate sides. As a guide to the educational planning of these schools, the London County Council published a pamphlet, "The Organisation of Comprehens-

KIDBROOKE

S C H O O L -- A N E N G L I S H

COMPREHENSIVE

SCHOOL

421

ive Secondary Schools", in which the principles underlying these schools were stated, and certain suggestions made as to their organisation. It is made quite clear, however, that there would be no common pattern and that schools would work out their own solution. "The fundamental aims of any comprehensive school - of which one of the most important is to maintain and improve standards for pupils of all kinds and degrees of ability - can only be achieved b y an organisation suited to its staff, and flexible enough to be readily adapted to the needs and interests of individual pupils as these become manifest. There can be no single pattern of organisation; each school must solve its own problems and, in doing so, develop its own special characteristics. The academic freedom of the headmaster and his staff is of prime importance". Kidbrooke School, Greenwich, is the first fully comprehensive school in London to be built specially for the purpose. The buildings, brilliantly designed to avoid any impression of overwhelming size, the imaginative use of colour and material, the contemporary furniture and the up-todate equipment make the school an inspiring place in which to work. It has, too, the supreme advantage of imposing nothing on us; nothing has to be organised because the buildings demand one arrangement or prevent another. We can use it as we will. Our school came into being not as a theory put into practice, or a group of people fitted into a building but as a living entity built by and for the people who work in it. I came to London in January, 1954, and I had eight months in which to prepare for the opening in September of a school with 1,650 pupils and 86 members of staff. Four schools were to be transferred to Kidbrooke, a central school, a secondary modern school, and two secondary technical schools which had previously been part of technical colleges. In addition, we were to admit 450 new l 1-year olds, covering the whole range of ability, except the educationally sub-normal, and 100 13-year olds who wished to take technical courses. The numbers increased to nearly 1,800 in 1955 and will reach the full strength of about 2,000 by 1959 or 1960. Staff from the contributory schools had the option of coming to Kidbrooke if they wished, and most of them decided to come. My first job then was to get to know the staff, to find out how they could best serve the new school and, through them, to find out the needs and capabilities of the children. I had to decide how responsibility was to be delegated, what part was to be played by the Deputy Head and the Senior Assistant. (The Council had already decided that these two posts should exist in every comprehensive school, but apart from them the allocation of responsibility was in the hands of the Head). I had to work out a scheme for special responsibility allowances for approval by the Advisory Corn-

422

MARY

G. G R E E N

mittee of the school, and help ill the appointment of some 30 new members of staff. Syllabuses had to be prepared, the school uniform was chosen. New children and their parents were interviewed; all children who were coming to the school and their parents were shown round the building and heard from me something of m y plans for the school. It was most important to gain the confidence of parents, for some were apprehensive about this vast new school about which so much had been written, so many criticisms made. The building itself disarmed them, and talks did something to reassure them. They had always been interested, they became enthusiastic, a n d from the beginning we have felt sure of their co-operation and support. While the teaching staff and I were occupied in these different ways, many other groups of people were making preparations. The Secretary, who took up his duties a month before I did, was an administrative officer from the staff of the Education Officer's Department. His job was to plan the administrative side, decide how the clerical work was to be done and b y whom, and to help in the appointing of his staff - an Assistant Secretary, a Shorthand-typist, a Telephonist, a Filing Clerk, a Storekeeper, and a group of Laboratory Technicians. The Librarian, a fully qualified librarian, not a teacher, also began her work, first of sorting the 4,000 books that came from the contributory schools, and then of ordering and cataloguing new books as chosen b y the staff. A Superintendent of School Meals was appointed, a School Nurse was chosen, and the medical rooms were equipped. It was a fascinating time as the school slowly came to life, for its spirit was born not in the magnificent buildings which are now our home, but in a small room at the top of the Greenwich Divisional Office where a Head Mistress, a Secretary and a Shorthand-typist began to plan for the staff and children who were to be the school. And the school grew as meetings of staff took place all over London, it seemed, and beyond, and as children scattered over quite a wide area of South-East London began to talk about "their new school". Then the day came when people came to the building and the building became a school. Tuesday, September 14th, was the beginning of term, and work began. It has long been customary in schools to begin the day with a collective act of worship and to give religious instruction, and both were made statutory obligations under the 1944 Act. More is needed, however, than common practice or legislation if Prayers and Scripture lessons are really to give Christian teaching and Christian beliefs to the children. Our Scripture teaching is in the hands of a group of practising Christians under a well qualified Head of Department, and the syllabus, based on

KIDBROOKE

SCHOOL -

AN ENGLISH

COMPREHENSIVE

SCHOOL

423

the London agreed syllabus, is planned to give the children a knowledge of the Bible and of the development of Christianity. There is a voluntary Bible Group, and members of staff take small study circles out of school time. I try to make Prayers mean something to the children, and although I often feel that the passage I read from the Bible, the Prayers I use are above their heads, I think that nevertheless they absorb a little of the spirit of the occasion. I am encouraged to hope that this will have a real and lasting effect on the children; some, finding only indifference or hostility at home or at work, may forget, on some we may never make any impression at all, but many will keep their beliefs and will take out with them into the world something of lasting value. The second vital thing I have stressed from the beginning is work. I feel most strongly that children come to school to work. They must learn by their own effort to overcome difficulties, to acquire skills, to master facts, to think for themselves, and it is through their work that their characters and personalities develop. I was determined that our standard of work should be high from the beginning in both academic and practical subjects, and that the children for whom so many material advantages had been provided should be enabled to develop to the full their talents and abilities. Too often in the past children have left school ill prepared for life because their capabilities have been underestimated and they have never been stretched soon enough and hard enough. It was, therefore, essential that, in delegating responsibility, I must put the organising of the children's time at school into the hands of people with vision and understanding, with high ideals, wide experience, and good powers of leadership. My own time and thought will always be given to the broad outlines of policy. I must be available for consultation, with staff, with officials, with visitors; I do some teaching, chiefly with forms in their last year at school, for in no other way can I get the feeling of the school. I must be prepared to take the final decision but I cannot attempt to know the details. The Deputy Head makes the timetable, shares with me the interviewing of parents and children and keeps a check on all extra curricula activities. The Senior Assistant sees that all the day-to-day arrangements run smoothly and deals with all routine staff problems. Responsibility for all the rest of the organisation is in the hands of three groups of people - Heads of Departments, Year Mistresses, and House Mistresses. There are Heads of Department in charge of each subject Scripture, English, History, Geography, Modern Languages, Mathematics, Science, Music, Art, Housecraft, Physical Education, Dressmaking, Tailoring, Catering, Millinery, Commerce. They organise the teaching of

424

M A R Y G. G R E E N

their own subject throughout the school; they assess the capabilities of the members of their department, decide what forms they shall teach, supervise their work, plan the syllabus with them and, with their help, order textbooks and library books. In short, they co-ordinate the work of their department and see that it fits in with the pattern of education in the school Year Mistresses are in charge of the different age groups - I years (11 + ) , II years (12+), III years (13+), IV years (14+), V years (15+), VI years (16+). In each year apart from the V l t h there are ten to fifteen forms of thirty girls, each in charge of a form mistress who teaches her form for at least one subject and looks after their general well-being. The Year Mistress is herself a form mistress; she acts as convener of meetings for the other form mistresses of the year, deciding with them matters like homework and examinations; disciplinary difficulties are dealt with by her and she advises the children about individual problems and assesses their capabilities for particular courses. The IV and V Year Mistresses consult with parents and the Youth Employment Officer and advise the girls about careers. The I Year Mistress, who was previously Head of the Secondary Modern School which joined us, deals with problems of general welfare and is the staff link with the Care Committee, a group of voluntary workers who visit homes where difficulties of any kind have arisen and help in social problems. The eight House Mistresses are each in charge of about 250 girls; their functions will be explained when I describe our House system. Some of these special posts, particularly those of House Mistress and Year Mistress were filled by members of staff from the contributory schools; m a n y of the Heads of Department were appointed from outside. The reason for this is that the Council's original plan was to transfer a grammar school to Kidbrooke and, had this been done, m a n y heads of academic departments would have been appointed from the staff of that school. The Minister of Education decided, however, not to close the grammar school, and we had to build up our academic strength from scratch. Many of the new appointments were, therefore, made of graduate masters and mistresses with grammar school experience. The children work in forms of about 30 girls with a narrow range of ability in each form, as I believe that the best teaching group is one in which the children can proceed at roughly the same pace. We have certain information about the children to guide us in putting the 450 new children into their fifteen forms. They have all taken the 11 + examination, known in London as the Junior Leaving Examination; some have been graded as suitable for an academic course of seven years, some for a five year, and

KIDBROOKE

S C H O O L -- A N E N G L I S H

COMPREHENSIVE

SCHOOL

425

some for a four year course. Children living in the area round the school have first claim on our places and know they can come whatever their result in the examination. This is the first step in destroying the nightmare of what has been called this "brutal" examination. Those places not filled b y these children are filled b y selecting children from outside the area. It m a y be said that it is illogical to have such an examination for children who are coming to a comprehensive school. The practice is likely, however, to continue for a time, for until the comprehensive school has proved its worth and is accepted b y all the parents in the district, some will still want their children to compete for places in grammar schools where an established tradition is, to them, a guarantee of good standards. For us, too, the examination has its uses and we take notice of the result, particularly in English, and of the Junior School Head's order of merit and his report on the child. There is, of course, considerable overlapping of one form with another: I 1 is, academically, the best form taken as a whole, I 2 is nearly as good and includes many children as quick as some in I 1. There is little difference between 1 6 and 1 7, I 12 and I 13, but a great deal of difference between I 1 and I 6, I 6 and I 12. There is no rigid division into grammar, central and secondary modern, and this terminology is not used in the school. If a child fails to keep up with her form or shows that she could work at a quicker pace then, after due consultation with the staff who teach her, she is transferred, unless we decide that, for reasons other than standard of work, a transfer is undesirable. As long as the form is a satisfactory teaching group and as long as the individual child does not suffer in any way b y remaining in it, transfers are made only at the end of a school year; last year about a dozen such transfers were made. All the children take a general course for the first three years, and study the following subjects - Scripture, English, History, Geography, French or Spanish, Mathematics, Science, Art, Craft, Music, Housecraft, Needlework, and Physical Education, which includes Gymnastics, Dancing, Swimming, and Games (Netball and Hockey in the winter, Cricket, Rounders, andTennis in the summer). The syllabuses for each subject are planned as a whole and then modified or adapted to suit the ability of each form - for some the work is on academic lines, they are able to use books and get information for themselves, others depend more on the teacher, and the most linfited children will proceed only very slowly, needing more help still from visual aids of various kinds and their work is on more practical lines. This method of planning the work makes transfer from form to form easy. The fourteenth and fifteenth forms in the first and second years are taught most of their subjects b y the same mistress, and

426

MARY G. GREEN

although they have the satisfaction of taking the same subjects as the other girls, all "academic" subjects are used principally as a means for teaching them English and the basic skills in arithmetic. Specialist courses begin in the fourth year and last at least two years. There are academic courses leading to the General Certificate of Education (Ordinary level) which are taken b y gifts of good intellectual ability; some of them hope to go to the Advanced level examination of the General Certificate of Education; others will take the shorter VI form courses. There are also two-year courses which include Shorthand and Typing, others in Tailoring, Dressmaking, Millinery, and Catering. All gifts taking these courses give the equivalent of a day and a half in the fourth year and two days in the fifth year to their special subject; the rest of their time is devoted to their general education, and many will be able to offer at least one or two subjects in the General Certificate of Education as well as taking a suitable technical or commercial examination. For those not able (often for financial reasons) or not willing to stay on beyond the statutory leaving age of fifteen, special courses are planned to prepare them for their first posts. In the VI form the work becomes more specialized still. We have only a small VI form this year - 25 girls, some of whom are working for Advanced level subjects - both Science and Arts, some doing a commercial course, some a general course; next year we shall have a Pre-Nursing course, too. As our VI form develops we shall increase the number of subjects taken, and when it reaches 100, as it should do in four years' time, we shall have Advanced courses in the full range of subjects - Scripture, English, History, Geography, Economics, Modern Languages, Classics, Mathematics, Science, Art, Music. The advantages that a large school can offer are obvious - every subject that a girl wishes to take can be available, specialisation call be delayed at least until 14; girls who develop late or who, through absence fall behind their age group, can still find their own level and follow their particular bent. We try in school time to give the children every facility and every help to develop morally, intellectually, physically. We try out of school hours to help them to use their leisure well, to develop a social conscience, habits of thrift, and even good road sense. All this is catered for in our" House" system. The children are divided into eight Houses; there are three or four children from each form in each House, so that there is a complete range of age and ability. They are in the charge of House Mistresses, and all members of staff are attached to a House; in each House there is a Physical Education mistress, an Artist, a Dressmaker, and so on, so that

KIDBROOKE

S C H O O L -- A N E N G L I S H

COMPREHENSIVE

SCHOOL

497

the staff talents are divided among the Houses. There are House meetings in school time once a fortnight, and in the alternate week the House meets together for Prayers. Each House has its own clubs - drama, gardening, photography, music, chess, fencing, dancing. As clubs are formed on the children's suggestions, there is a certain similarity in the activities, and nearly all Houses have a choir and a drama club, but several Houses m a y join together for chess. Each House has its own charity collection and adopts a local institution - hospital or old people's home. National Savings are collected by House mistresses, cycle tests arranged by them. The children have their dinner in House groups and are supervised by staff belonging to their House. They have inter-House games, matches, and athletic meetings. It is, of course, difficult to assess the value of such groups in a day school, for it is a system that belongs to the boarding school where the children actually live in separate houses. In a day school not all the children gain anything from belonging to a House. In fact, the very nature of their out-of-school ties and interests - father's tea to get, mother's shopping to be done, smaller children to be fetched from school preclude those very children from taking part who would gain most from House activities. Nevertheless, there is considerable value in these "Houses"; the children meet members of staff socially, they get to know children doing different courses from their own, they learn to organise their own activities. Another advantage of the House system is that it enables a great m a n y girls to take responsibilities; there is the important post of House Captain, there are captains of the different games, secretaries of the different clubs, representatives for various purposes. Many a girl not good enough for school teams can enjoy playing for her House; those who m a y not aspire to school choir or school play m a y get great satisfaction in singing or acting for their House. There is one other important way in which the girls learn to take responsibility. We have School Prefects, chosen after nomination by staff and senior girls from girls in the fourth year upwards, and we are particularly careful to see that at least one prefect is chosen from each of the forms in the upper school, so that even girls leaving during the fourth year have the opportunity of sharing the duties and privileges of this office. The duties include supervising the children in corridors, cloakrooms and at dinner, helping in the library, dealing with lost property. They form, under the leadership of the Head Prefect and three Senior Prefects, a kind of advisory committee; they discuss problems of school discipline, general behaviour, uniform, and pass on suggestions to me. There are form prefects, too, chosen by their own form, who look after

428

M A R Y G. G R E E N

the form when it is left on its own and who meet the school prefects from time to time to pass on to them the ideas of their form on school affairs. Prefects are expected to set standards for the rest of the school, and it is sometimes surprising to see h o w even the youngest prefects develop under what is quite heavy responsibility. The comprehensive school has often been criticised because it is said to neglect the individual child and to fail to give responsibilities to gifts leaving at the earlier ages of 15 and 16 who, in a secondary modern school, would have held important posts. Our experience directly contradicts this. In a large school there are so m a n y jobs to be done, so m a n y opportunities for service that they are there for everyone with a capacity for leadership, an ability to organise people or events, or the pertinacity to carry through a job to the end on her own and without supervision. As far as the individual child is concerned, she seems in no way lost, frightened, or overwhelmed. They all have the security of their form and their form mistress; they have their House groups where they follow their particular interests with the small groups who share them. They seem, in eighteen months, to have developed poise and self-rehance; they have learnt to talk easily and confidently, to behave well and naturally; their standards of work have improved and they have grown in grace. Above all, they are proud to belong to a great community. For all this and for much more the credit is due to the staff. It will be quite clear from what I have said already how much they do for the children, quite apart from their teaching duties. They give the best that is in them to the school. They have m a n y different qualifications - some are graduates with a full University training and a postgraduate teacher's diploma, some have been to two-year training colleges and, of these, some have worked for their degree in their spare time, some have done three-year courses in colleges of Physical Education or Domestic Subjects, some have qualifications in commercial subjects and have had business experience, others have worked in the fashion houses of the West End and have special qualifications to teach technical subjects, some have taught in grammar schools or technical schools, others in secondary modern schools, some have come to us straight from college. They all teach a wider range of ability than t h e y have done before; they learn much from each other - a graduate m a y well go for help to a person from atwo-year college who has experience of teaching the slower children. Some bring the brilliance of their intellect, some their vision and understanding, their musical and artistic gifts, their practical and athletic skills; all bring enthusiasm, a tremendous capacity for hard work, de-

KIDBROOKE SCHOOL -- AN ENGLISH COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL

429

termination, good humour, friendliness, and a sense of purpose in the great work they are doing. A school is always greater than the sum total of the individuals who work in it, and although it would be premature to speak of success or achievement, I can say that in two h a p p y years we have come a long w a y along that road, and we have kept clearly before us the aim of educationalists everywhere - the satisfying of the needs of the individual child. KIDBROOKE SCHOOLE I N E ENGLISCHE ,,COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL" von MARY G. GREEN, London ,,Kidbrooke School" wurde im September 1954 mit 1.650 Schtilerinnen und einem Kollegium yon 86 Lehrkr~ften erSffnet. I n dieser Neugriindung wurden zwei ehemalige Secondary modern schools und zwei Secondary technical schools zusammengeftihrt. Hinzu kamen 450 neue Schiilerinnen aller Begabungsstufen im Alter yon 11Jahren, sowie 100 Schiilerinnen im Alter von 13 Jahren ftir den technischen Zweig. 1955 wuchs die Anzahl der Schtilerinnen auf fast 1.800 an und 1959 oder 1960 wird die H6chstzahl von etwa 2.000 erreicht sein. Das Kollegium setzt sich teilweise aus Lehrkr~ften der in ,,Kidbrooke School" aufgegangenen Schulen und teilweise, einschlieBlich der Leiterinnen der einzelneu Ztige, aus neu eingestellten Kr~ften zusammen. Die stellvertretende Leiterin teilt sich mit mir in die allgemeinen Aufgaben der Schulleitung. Die allt~glichen Dinge, die das Kollegium angehen, sind Angelegenheit einer weiteren leitenden Lehrkraft (Senior Assistant), die auch ftir den reibungslosen Ablauf der Organisation sorgt. Ein Sekret~r, dem ftinf Hilfskriifte zur Verftigung stehen, ist ftir die gesamte laufende Verwaltungsarbeit verantwortlich. Ferner haben drei weitere Gruppen eine Verantwortung zu tragen: 1) die Leiterinnen der einzelnen Ztige, 2) die ftir die einzelnen Jahrg~nge verantwortlichen Lehrerinnen (Year Mistresses)und 3) die Hausleiterinnen (House Mistresses). Die Leiterinnen der einzelnen Zfige teilen die Arbeit ein, besprechen mit ihren Lehrkr~ften den Lehrplan und nehmen die Auswahl yon Lehr- und Bibliotheksbtichern vor. Kurz gesagt, sie sorgen dafiir, dab die Arbeit ihres Zuges sich in den allgemeinen Erziehungsplan der Schule einftigt. Jeder Jahrgang umfai3t 13 bis 15 Klassen, deren jede ihre eigene Klassenlehrerin hat. Die Year Mistresses (s.o.), die selbst auch Klassenlehrerinnen sind, berufen Versammlungen mit den anderen Klassenlehrerinnen ihres Jahrganges ein, um mit ihnen gemeinsam Entscheidungen tiber Hausarbeiten, E x a m i n a und dergl, zu treffen. Sie sind ferner ftir die Disziplin verantwortlich, beraten die M~dchen in der Wahl ihrer F~cher und informieren sie fiber ihre Berufsaussichten. Die acht House Mistresses betreuen je etwa 250 M~dchen jeglichen Alters u n d der verschiedensten Begabungsrichtungen. Alle Kolleginnen sind einem Hause zugeteilt, und jedes Haus hat seine eigenen out-o]-school activities, organisiert seine Clubs, seine Sammlungen ftir wohlt~tige Zwecke, seine Spargruppen (National

Savings groups). I n allen meinen Schulpliinen habe ich zwei Dinge immer wieder nachdrticklich betont: die Wichtigkeit einer grtindlichen religiSsen und moralischen Erziehung u n d die Bedeutung der Arbeit.

430

MARY

G. G R E E N

Es wird in Klassen zu je 30 Schfilerinnen unterrichtet, die ihren geistigen F~higkeiten entsprechend zusammengesetzt sind. W~hrend der ersten drei Jahre wird in allen Klassen ein allgemein gehaltener Unterricht erteilt. Der Lehrplan jedes einzelnen Faches wird als Rahmenplan aufgestellt, und es ist die Aufgabe der Lehrerin, ihn in der Ifir ihre Bilasse geeigneten Form durchzuffihren. M~dchen, die bis zu ihrem 16. Lebensjahr in der Schule bleiben, k6nnen in ihrem vierten und ffinften Schuljahr die verschiedensten F~tcher w~hlen: wissenschaftliche F~tcher, die zum General Certificate o[ Education, Ordinary Level (Mittlere Reife) ffihren, sowie Handelsf~cher, Schneidern, N~hen, Hauswirtschaft, usw. M~dchen, die mit 15 Jahren die Schule verlassen, sollen in ihrem vierten und letzten I a h r ganz allgemein auf das Arbeitsleben vorbereitet werden. Da unsere VI. Klasse stark anw~chst - yon 25 auf fiber 100 - wollen wit noch weitere Kurse einrichten und sowohl alle F/icher, die zum ,,Advanced level" (mit dem Abitur vergleichbar) ffihren als auch kaufm~nnische F/icher und Kurse in Krankenpflege berficksichtigen. Alle Kolleginnen haben ihr Bestes ffir diese neue Schule gegeben : ihre Erfahrung, ihr Wissen, ihre besonderen Gaben, ihre Pers6nlichkeit, und wenn es auch noch zu Irfih ist, von einem Erfolg zu sprechen, so kann ich doch sagen, dab wit w~hrend zweier glficklicher Jahre dem Ziel aller Erzieher, dem Kinde zu dienen, wesentlich n~her gekommen sind.

KIDBROOKE UNE

SCHOOL

" C O M P R E H E N S I V E SCHOOL

~' ANGLAISE

par M A R Y G. GREEN, London A la date de son inauguration en septembre 1954, l'Ecole de Filles de Kidbrooke accueillait 1650 61~ves et comprenait un personnel enseiguant de 86 membres. Cette Iondation r6sultait de l'int4gration de 4 6coles secondaires: deux 6coles modernes et deux 6coles techniques. L'on comptait en outre 450 nouvelles 61gves de premiere ann6e, ~g6es de I 1 ans, des niveaux d'aptitudes les plus vari6s, et 100 61~ves de 13 arts venues pour suivre des cours techniques. Le nombre des 61~ves s'est 61ev6 en 1955 ~ pros de 1800 et atteindra son maximum, soit environ 2000, en 1959 ou 1960. Un certain nombre de membres du corps enseignant sont venus des 6coles associ6es. D'autres, y compris les directrices des diverses divisions, viennent de l'ext6rieur. La Directrice Adjointe partage avec moi les Ionctions ordinaires de direction. La Premiere Assistante rggle les questions courantes concernant le personnel et veille, au jour le jour, ~ la bonne marche de l'organisation. Un Secr6taire, aid6 de 5 employ6es, est charg6 du travail administratif courant. Les autres responsables sont: les Directrices de Division, les Maitresses de promotion et les Directrices de Maison. Les premieres ont pour tgche d'organiser le travail des membres de leur division, de pr6parer avec elles le programme d'6tudes et de choisir les manuels scolaires et les ouvrages destin6s aux biblioth~ques. E n bref, elles doivent veiller ce que, dans leur division, le travail r6ponde aux conceptions p6dagogiques g6n6rales de l'4cole. I1 existe, pour chaque promotion, 13 5~15 classes, dirig6es chacune par une maltresse de classe. Les maitresses de promotion, charg~es elles-memes d'une classe, doivent r~unir leurs coll~gues s'occupant de la m~me promotion pour d4cider avec elles des

KIDBROOKE SCHOOL -- AN ENGLISH COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL

431

questions telles que devoirs et examens. ElMs s'occupent des questions de discipline et de l'orientation scolaire et professionnelle des @l@ves. Les 8 Directrices de Maison ont chacune en charge un groupe d'environ 250 @l~ves de tous Ages et de tous niveaux. T o u s l e s membres du personnel de l'@cole sont attach@s k une Maison; chacune de celles-ci organise ses propres activit@s extrascolaires: clubs, collectes pour des buts charitables, groupes d'@pargne (National

Savings groups). Dans tous les plans que j'ai @tablis pour l'@cole, j'ai soulign@ particuli~rement deux aspects: l'importance d'une profonde formation religieuse et morale et l'importance du travail. Les enfants sont group@s en classes de 30 d'apr@s le niveau de leurs aptitudes. Au cours des trois premieres ann@es, elles reQoivent un enseignement g@n@ral. Le programme de chaque mati~re est pr@vu dans ses grandes lignes; chaque professeur l'adapte suivant les besoins particuliers de sa classe. Les @l@vesqui peuvent poursuivre leurs @tudes jusqu'g 16 ans ont ~ choisir, pour leur quatri~me ou cinqui@me ann@~ entre un enseignement classique conduisant au Certificat gTn@ral ('ordinary level') ou des cours commerciaux, des cours de couture et de coupe, d'enseignement m@nager etc ... Pour les @l~ves q u i t t a n t l'@cole A 15 ans, le programme de leur quatri@me et derni@re ann@e est prTvu de fa~on g les pr@parer un peu A leur entr@e au travail. Notre 6e classe @rant pass@e de 25 ~ plus de 100 @l@ves,il v a falloir en @largir les programmes pour y inclure routes les mati@res qu'il s'agisse non seulement de la derni~re @tape du second cycle, mais encore des cours commerciaux et de pu@riculture. Le corps enseignant a consacr@ g sa tgche le meilleur de ses forces - exp@rience, sagesse, dons particuliers, qualit@s personneUes. Bien qu'il soit trop tSt pour parler de suce~s, je puis dire qu'au cours de ces deux excellentes annTes, nous avons parcouru une bonne pattie du chemin qui m@ne au but vis@ par t o u t 6ducateur: r@pondre aux besoins individuels de chaque enfant.