My three-year-old son and I went shopping for his school uniform over the
summer holiday. As he stood in the changing room, swamped by even the
smallest trousers, several people commented that he looked too young to
start school. I couldn’t agree more. Scarcely will he have blown out the
candles on his fourth birthday cake than I’ll be waving him off at the
school gates. The poor little man still puts his pants on back to front,
needs a nap after lunch and thinks baby pigs come out of eggs. How is he
going to cope with literacy and numeracy hours and SATs, let alone the
horrors of school toilets?
Yes, I am an over-anxious mother but I surely can’t be the only person who
feels that British children start school far too young. In other parts of
Europe children embark on their academic career aged 6, or even 7 and a
growing body of research suggests that channelling children into formal
learning structures at such a young age breeds a sense of failure and
disaffection that will dog them throughout their school career.
The law states that the statutory school starting age for children in the UK
is the term after a child’s fifth birthday, but it is common practice in
England and Wales to admit children to reception class at the beginning of
the year in which they become 5, which means that most children start school
at the age of 4. The latest government figures indicate that around 80 per
cent of children enter school before their fifth birthday and last year
there were almost 800,000 four-year-olds in our primary schools.
By comparison, children in France, Portugal, Belgium, and Norway start school
at 6, while the school starting age in many Scandinavian countries is 7.
This is the starting age in Finland, where students recently beat those from
39 other countries to come out tops in maths, science and reading, according
to a study by the Programme for International Student Assessment.
Solvie Jorgensen moved to the UK from Norway when her daughter had just turned
4. She initially opted to defer school entry for a year: “It seemed much too
early: in Norway Freya would have had two more years of nursery.” But Freya
pleaded to be allowed to start, so they enrolled her in November. “I was
pleasantly surprised, but still think there’s a far greater emphasis on
numbers and letters from a young age in British schools than in those back
home. There, formal teaching doesn’t start until 6, and even then teachers
are more concerned about children being happy at school and making friends
than whether they can write their name and count to ten.”
So why do UK children embark on formal education at an age when most of their
continental counterparts are following a more play-based kindergarten
programme? It all dates back to 1870, when MPs plumped for 5 as the school
starting age to protect children from exploitation at home or unhealthy
conditions in the streets. Despite continuous calls for it to be reviewed,
it has never been changed.
Today, arguments in favour of the UK’s early starting age usually centre
around the need to level the playing field for children from disadvantaged
backgrounds but, paradoxically, a study by the Organisation for Economic
Cooperation and Development indicated that by the time they reach their
teens, the gap between the achievements of students from professional and
working-class backgrounds is wider in the UK than in most other countries.
Caroline Sharp, of the National Foundation for Educational Research, sums it
up thus: “There appears to be no compelling educational rationale for a
school starting age of 5 or for the practice of admitting four-year-olds to
reception classes.”
The Government is quick to defend its policy. The Department for Children,
Skills and Families (DCSF) says: “The formal school starting age of 5 has
served children well for decades and standards in our primary schools have
never been higher.” It maintains that “all the evidence – key-stage results,
international comparisons and Ofsted reports – make this clear.”
But many teachers at the chalk-face disagree: a recent survey by the Times
Educational Supplement (TES) found that 39 per cent of British primary
teachers believe that children should not start formal education until they
are at least 6, and fewer than one in five believes that children should
start at the age of 4.
“Research has clearly shown a correlation between pushing programmes that
promote early academic achievement and disaffection in teenage years,” Debe
Lawson, of the Professional Association of Teachers, told participants at
the organisation’s recent conference. Hungarian, German and Flemish teachers
do not start teaching reading, writing or written numbers until children are
6, believing that many are unable to cope with these skills at a younger age
and if forced to do so will fail, building up a negative attitude to school
life that can be difficult to break down later.
“A plethora of research advocates the importance of play for the overall
development of the child,” says Lawson. And while the DCSF claims that “the
first years of schooling focus on play-based activities in addition to
formal learning”, Lawson contends that, in reality, “teachers, nursery
nurses and early-years professionals struggle to provide a play-based
curriculum because of the pressures of performance tables and targets,
particularly in literacy and numeracy”.
The DCSF insists that it is important for children to make progress in
literacy and numeracy from an early age, “as these skills are critical to
their ability to get the most out of learning later on”.
“The evidence seems to suggest that teaching formal skills early gives
children an initial advantage,” says Sharp. “But children who embark later
on literacy and numeracy programmes quickly catch up. By the age of about 8
there is no discernible difference.”
Studies carried out by the International Association for the Evaluation of
Educational Achievement (IEA) support this view. Looking at the relationship
between the age of starting school and reading performance at the ages of 9
and 14, they assessed children from 32 different countries, in most of which
children started school at 5, 6 and 7, and found the top-achieving countries
had a later starting age.
So should concerned parents delay their child’s entry into school? When I was
a child pupils could start school at three different points during the
reception year. As a summer-born babe myself, I was launched into the world
of academe after Easter, by which time I was nearly 5. Research carried out
by the NFER indicates that there are advantages to this system. “Among older
[autumn-born] children, those with the full reception year did best,” says
Sharp. “But for younger [summer-born] children, those with the full
reception year did not do as well as those who were of the same age with one
or two terms less time at school.”
In theory, at least, parents still have the option to delay entry – and there
are those who do so – but in practice this is not as easy as it sounds. A
study by the TESindicates that most schools now admit children only in
September, to maximise funding. It is worth checking with your local
education authority about its policy on deferred entry, but when we inquired
about it for our young-in-the-year son, we were told that we would risk
losing the place that we had secured at our preferred – and heavily
oversubscribed – school. Not much of a choice then, really.
Nevertheless, much can be done to ensure that children who are not quite
“ready” will not be disadvantaged. Dr Helen Likierman, an educational
psychologist and the co-author, with Valerie Muter, of Prepare Your Child
for School: How to make sure your child gets off to a flying start
(Vermilion, £8.99), says: “Free play and ‘downtime’ are essential for
children’s wellbeing, socialisation and creativity. But the more
high-quality social and preeducational experiences that children have before
starting formal school, the better prepared they will be – and the
transition will, therefore, be easier for them. This is important not just
for academic skills, but also for helping to ensure that the child is
confident and happy.”
According to Likierman and Muter, I didn’t need to spend the summer teaching
my son nuclear physics and quadratic equations, just how to wipe his bottom
and put on his PE kit. But the question remains: do children in the UK start
school too young?
“There’s no such thing as a right age,” says Caroline Sharp, whose overview of
the body of research concludes that there is “no definitive evidence” to
prove that late is better than early (or vice versa). “International
comparisons are indirect evidence at best because they involve such
different cultures and educational systems. What we can say is that a later
start appears not to be a disadvantage to children’s progress.”
What is important is the nature of a child’s early school experiences.
“Effective programmes tend to emphasise exploration, language development
and play, not academics.” Debe Lawson agrees, going so far as to suggest
that: “If we move to a broader early-years curriculum, in which the emphasis
is not on the academic achievement by the age of 5, but on a broader
preparation of life and lifelong learning, we would not need to raise the
school leaving age.”
I’m not sure where all this leaves me. I could opt to home educate my son, of
course, but I think that we’d end up killing each other. Or we could take a
risk and defer entry for a year, hoping that some kid in his class will
decide to emigrate to Outer Mongolia and free up a place for next year. But
he’s so excited about going to school, and already head over heels in love
with his wonderful teacher.
So, come next week, I guess that I’ll just shorten his overlong trousers, pop
his blankie into the pocket and leave my anxieties at the school gate.
School starting ages elsewhere in the world
4 Northern Ireland
5 England, Malta, The Netherlands, Scotland, Wales
6 Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Iceland,
Republic of Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal,
Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey
7 Bulgaria, Estonia, Denmark, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland,
Sweden
Source: the National Foundation for Educational Research
Don´t quite know where you got all your facts from but schools starts at age 3 in Spain and 3.5 in France (I know this because I live in Spain and my husband is French) I think it´s rather misleading to paint a bad picture of the UK by making these wrong comparisons - most expats I know feel angry that they have to put their kids in school at 3 and would love to be able to delay it until later...
Sara, Barcelona,
I live in Scotland and the term starts in August.My daughter just turned 4 in February.If your birthday is before 1March this year all 4s start in August or you can defer.My daughter is quite intelligent but feel she lacks socially and emotionally.I have decided to defer because i feel she would benefit from another year of play at nursery,which would help build her confidence and social and emotional well being.I believe sending her at 4 would a big mistakeat present and for the future,and also competitive to the 5s.She should be 4 for as long as and when shes 5she will be ready.
Sharon, glasgow, scotland
I am English now living in South Wales I am HORRIFIED at the practice of children starting school full time at of 3. These little babies who should be doing no more than attending play-group for a couple of hours a day are shunted off to school in full uniform at 9am... Often on the day of their 3rd birthday. They are expected to eat dinner at school, and dont go home until 3pm. The parents think it is great! Infact there is even talk at a local school to start taking them in at 2 1/2!
Are the children better adjusted? Better educated? Do they have better manners? The answer to each question is in my view a big NO NO NO. I work in one of these schools, and I find that as a whole the school has far more children showing behavioral problems than I have ever seen in a primary school in England, even in the most deprived areas.
Young children belong at home. The mines are closed. The grinding poverty long over. THERE IS NO NEED TO SEND A 3 YEAR OLD TO SCHOOL. VIVE SCANDINAVIA.
Sue Dodds, Aberdare,
There is no need to attack the woman who home educates her family - she is doing something for them! I think your anger should be pointed at the government officials or you should try educating a different age group where you will not have to cut food up and feed them! This is exactly why I am going to educate my children at home - they cannot possibly get the same attention when there are 12 children to one adult at nursery or reception! I started a teacher training course and decided it was not for me. After studying different educational theories, I disliked the one that is currently followed in the UK so much, that I felt that I couldn't possibly go against my ethics and become a teacher. A whole new child led learning approach needs to be introduced in schools with more staff and greater funding (easier said than done I know).
Jules, Manchester, England
I read with interest about the mother whose childs' school teachers appeared to be irritated at his lack of social skills. Of course they were!!!!!!!! As a teacher in a mixed nursery / reception class, every child who attend who cannot feed or toilet him/herself is just another job for me to do instead of teaching!! I have a huge class of small children who need me to peel, core, dice fruit at snack time, and literally post the pieces into teh childrens open mouths, as they dont know what to do with whole fruit. I have children with little or no language at all, and within the year they will be expected to have started reading..... how frustrating it is, when the people who have one to one time with these children at home cant find the time to help! aaaaargh!
jan b, huddersfield, england
My Son could read at the age of three, but couldn't dress himself properly until he was six and wouldn't wipe his bottom until he was 8!
When he started school I was frustrated that they were trying to teach him the alphabet, but showed him no instructions on personal development. They were even iritated by his lack of social skills which they seemed unableor unwilling to help him with.
He is now 11 and has been home educated since he was seven. Hi social skills have developed as I knew they would eventually.
I adore him and cherish every day we have together.
He is the eldest of four children, all home educated.
Louisa Southey, Abingdon, Oxfordshire
I live in Germany (which is omitted from your list), where most kids start school at 6 - some children are almost 7. While there is a tendancy to move the age forward, there are still many reservations. Children here usually attend kindergarten from the age of 3 upwards, but are rarely encouraged to read or write - they simply play.
I think a combination of the two systems would be good - creating something in between only playing and pure academic school. I have a child of almost 5 and she is very into reading, writing and simple mathematics which is not supported at all by kindergarten, which seems a shame to me.
AP, Düsseldorf, Germany
Compulsory education in the Republic of Ireland is 6 to 15. However, most children start school at 4 and over 80% stay on in school after 15 with most continuing to 17/18.
Philip, London,
I have worked with young children over 30 years and feel very strongly that children should not go to School too early. I have also worked with children from around the world and found that children develope better if left in a nursery situation until they are six. At six they are ready to read and sit down to learn. Socialising takes place under six and helps children to have a good grounding in life experiences. Most children attain a better education and achieve far better if they do not go to school until they are six
P.Foulis, Bagshot, England
What hasn't been mentioned in this article is that children in Scandinavian countries who start school later, tend to go to kindergarten from an early age and are therefore in a form of structured social education. They don't just mill around at home, going to the odd toddler group or pre-school session for 6 years.
Holly Gardner, Woking,
The prevailing criteria for school entry´s age in most countries has nothing to do with the welfare of children or the developing of their learning capabilities, but with the necessity of working parents and the lack of adequate and affordable day care options.
Astrid, Oslo, Norway
In South Africa you start school the year you turn seven, and until then you go to Nursery School where your day consists mostly of playing, painting dressing up ... Even for the first two years of school, you finish at 12 (getting later very six months or so, until you start finishing school at 2:30/3:00). Classes involved learning English and Maths, and I have some recollection of learning basic Afrikaans.
I helped take my niece to her first day at school when she was 4. It was heart-breaking and she looked so frightened.
If children are in school, having learning crammed down their throats from the age of 4, no longer they lost interest in education, and are disruptive. I hope this law changes before I have children.
Lisa, London,
It depends on what you mean by school: do all 4-year olds in the UK start straight into academic learning and structured lessons? I doubt it. "School" in many European countries means exactly that - learning, tests, reading / writing, basic maths etc. Before the children start school, however, they usually spend time at nursery / creche / kindergarten where they play games, learn to socialise and learn creativity through music / art etc.
The only difference in the UK is that school and nursery are all rolled into the one institution rather than separated out. The first two years at school in the UK are really just "baby" school where little formal learning happens. And in any case, isn't this an irrelevant debate when there are a considerable number of children who spend time in nursery / childcare from 6mths - 3yrs now anyway?
MB, Edinburgh,
Interestingly, in South Africa, where I have raised 3 children, they start formal school the year they turn 7. They don't appear to suffer any ill-consequences and have a much longer period in nursery school/pre-primary where far more time is spent in the playground, and in just being kids!
By the time they are 9, their reading skills etc are on a par with children educated overseas so why the hurry to push them into very formal schooling at a young age?
Working mothers can still place their children into good nursery schools that run from 8 - 12.30 to enable them to work, and there are after-care facilities for fulltime working mothers.
It's an interesting debate!
Jos Scotcher, Plettenberg Bay, South Africa
I think that it's no so much a question of what age children start school, rather that the style and level of teaching is at the appropriate level. I am British and live in Denmark where my eldest started school last year, so I have experienced both ends of the scale. Children learn about letters in kindergarten in much the same way as reception year children in the UK, and the level and style of teaching for the 7 year old child starting school is not the same as the level for those starting at 4 in the UK. School starting age is not the deciding factor; quality teaching and appropriate work are far more important.
Stephanie Pedersen, Esbjerg, Denmark
I would like to correct one point:
in the Netherlands the age of five is not the beginning of school in the way it is ment here.
At the age of five all children HAVE to enter "school", but school in Holland starts with two years of kindergarten (4-6 year old children) and primary school starts with the age of 6. These institutes are in one building. The reason that ALL children have to follow at least the last year (second group) of kindergarten is to be sure that all children learn how to understand and speak dutch. Also those children where no dutch is spoken at home. Because especially these families, so the experience learned, do often not send their children to kindergarten. That is why the dutch government obligated all children to follow at least one year of kindergarten before primary school starts.
Marit Kandzior, Dusseldorf, Germany
I feel very concerned about the young age at which many children are starting school. A friend's son has recently started Reception Class when he is only just four. He's a very small child too, which adds to the feeling that he is too young to be in a formal classroom situation, albeit play is included. I am also genuinely concerned for the teaching staff and wonder if they are receiving sufficient support themselves to cope with the demands they are faced with.
Jane, Henley, UK
I find it astonishing that my son started reception this week aged 4 and 3 months. If he hadn't the school would not guarentee him a place next year. It is not that he has to attend that concerns me most, rather the timetable. 6 hours a day! The same hours as 15 and 16 year olds.
Given that the UK schooling is based on a decision from the Victorian era would it not be prudent to adopt a 21st Century timetable. Surely our children should start school at 6 and leave at 18. Also, an Easter start for children born in the summer months would seem to make sense. I'm sure we would all reap the benefits of such revision.
Anthony Smith, Woking, UK
One major difference is, I believe, the fact that French kindergarten teachers have had exactly the same professional training as the primary school teachers. Kids don't learn to the 3 R's until primary, but in kindergarten they have devoted professional teachers teaching them social and "pre-primary" skills, classroom discipline etc. Kids arriving at primary from kindergarten are really "rarin' to go" , and can are not traumatised by suddenly finding themselves in a totally new environment. All kids in France go to kindergarten. It is not childcare but education. Yes, Charlie, other parents chase values too.
Elspeth, Paris, France
In Spain children can start state school the Sep of the year they turn 3 (just like Sarah says in France) so my son started at 2 3/4 as his birthday is in Dec. I would have preferred to leave him anoather year at nursery school but my husband thought he should join the other children in our neighbourhood. He went from 9-4 & had a nap for an hour. For the first two years it was like a very structured kindergarten but the year he turned 5 they gave the children who felt like it the opportunity to read. In his case he wasn't yet 5 but his brother who has a March birthday was 5 1/2 at this stage - a big difference. They are both doing very well at school. Being Irish I was horrified at first but now, who knows? When in Rome...?
Angela, Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain
In Germany, children also start school at 6. Having moved here from the UK, we were anxious about our kids being behind other children back in England. However, our seven-year-old taught herself to read in English six months after starting German school and four months later is reading Harry Potter. There is something to be said for the academic readiness of an older child.
Charlotte, Ladenburg, Germany
"a growing body of research suggests that channelling children into formal learning structures at such a young age breeds a sense of failure and disaffection that will dog them throughout their school career."
Excuse me? Can we stop generalisations please? I started school when I was 4 and turned 5 the following May. In no way has that given me a sense of failure etc. Add to that the fact that I passed a set of highly competitive entrance exams (the only non-French person to do so) to go to business school in France, I can honestly say that my education experience in England did not disadvantage me compared to the French students!!! On the contrary, I was in the top 5% of my year in France.....
Beth, Paris,
this very important time to be a child and absorb the outer world with the own consiousness should be extentended as much as possible. they will have enough time in their lifetime to let rule the mind with letters and symbols. why taking this precious time earlier away? being a child is a gift!
cheli maria mula, london, uk
I could not agree more. 4 or even 5 is a very young age, and it might explain a lot about the general attitude of students when they get to the other end of the education system, i.e. university.
It remains a mystery why this country insists on doing things, important things, differently from the Continent, where there are many very good models to copy like a more child-centred education system (rather than league table obsessed), a more efficient public health service and a better sense of hygene too ,just to mention a few.
cd, bristol, UK
School in Sweden formally starts when the kid is 7. However, just as in the UK there is a 'reception' year so they really start at 6.
We opted to defer our 4 year old son from reception year as he was born 27th of August and we believed it was more important for him to run around and play rather than learn how to sit still. This year our borough refused his application on the grounds that he was too old so we opted to home educate him. A decision we have not regretted.
Richard, Fulham, London
My little girl starts next week and cannot wait. She is 5 in October but has been ready for six months. She has spent 2.5 days a week in a quality nursery for the last three years and is raring to go. Keeping her at home and depriving her of the chance to interact with other kids and learn more about life would be a criminal offence. If I tried to stop her going she'd scratch my eyes out. I think there's a bit more to school than speaking and counting - she does that anyway, just not always in the correct tense.
Andy, Huddersfield,
I've always homeschooled my son, now aged 10, and whilst he learned to read fairly early (aged 4-5) and has always loved reading stories, I've found that he benefits from going at his own pace. It's great fun to have him around, - sometimes we have a go at each other - but that can happen after school too can't it! There has to be a certain amount of sacrifice, (my husband is a mere secondary school teacher, so paying the mortgage is a stretch) but the benefits in seeing him develop as a normal balanced child, not overly influenced by peer pressure, and forced into performing at a certain level to enable a school to produce a good set of statistics, is well worth the financial constraints. I feel sorry for those people who are forced into sending their babies into school just so's they secure a place, or because they think they couldn't manage financially - this society certainly pressurises women into thinking they're not worthy unless they have a career, or earn a wage...
Liz, Telford, England
I share your experiences and totally agree with your article.
My daughter trotted off to school 3 weeks after her 4th birthday and has had a completely miserable year. Tears, tiredness, sense of failure. She summed it up with the terrible question "Mummy, why do they always give the big children easy work that they can do, but they give the small children really hard work that they can't do. And they do it every time. Every time."
I think it amounts to child abuse by the state. Strong words, but I feel justified in using them. Just so Mum's can get back to paying taxes. It's a disgrace.
Give July and August babies the option of delaying a year. At present you can do this, but the child goes straight to year 1 (in Surrey, at least), miles behind contemporaries. Allow them to go into reception. So mums keen to go to work can use the current system. Those who want to keep them behind can do so, and start reception a year later. Simple.
Andrew Forbes, Thames Ditton, Surrey
regardless of whether or not there is any educational advantage, where else are children supposed to be but school in this country where both parents have to work?
Marco, bhm, uk
You cannot generalise. some kids are ready early some are not. It must be a decision made by parents who knonw their children best. My three kids went to nusery school from 3 to 4 and then to full time school and I do not regret a moment. They loved it all. The nursery was fantastic with terrific staff and all my children missed it so much they went back to help and visit for years afterwards and to help when they were bigger.
R Mason, London, UK
In France children start school at 3 sometimes at 2 years and 9 months, so is not only in the UK.
Luna , Paris, France
My son has just started school at 4yrs and 2 weeks old. I asked the school whether he could wait a year and start just after he was 5, which is legally acceptible. The school said that this would be fine but they would have to place him in Year 1 and not Reception. So he would have missed a whole year of learning to read, write and playing with numbers, not to mention the social interaction and would have very little opportunity to catch up. This system cannot be in the child's best interest.
Lorraine Dixon, Guildford,
My children started their education in the UK with part time Montessori nursery at aged 3yr. I insisted on keeping them parttime until reception at aged 5yr. We moved to Canada when they were 8 & 11. They were no further ahead academically even though they had an extra 2 years. Children here start kindergarten at aged 5 and it's part time. Full time school is at 6yrs.
elizabeth, vancouver, canada
This article is slightly misleading.
We live in France and my son's birthday is at the end of October. He was two months away from his 3rd birthday when he started school over here. I can assure you that although it is "kindergarten school", it is fairly rigid and they expect a lot from the pupils. For me, this is an age when children should be allowed to play freely and not be sat down at a desk in school doing specific tasks. He was, after all, only two when he started. He gets reports twice a year and is expected to reach certain goals and standards and behaviour. The children are not expected to read until age 6, but they certainly don't have the freedom they would have at a nursery. I envy my friends in England who are just now sending their 4 year olds who are about to turn 5 off to school. My son has just started his third year at school (at the tender age of 4) and I can see no tangible benefits to that.
Beth, Strasbourg, France
You can, if you want and are able, home educate your child (which is perfectly legal) until you think they are ready for school. We only started our daughter (going on 6) this September because she decided she wanted to go but we would have been quite happy to continue home educating until she was at least 7. Thankfully we had the pleasure of helping her learn to read (which she does fluently), count and swim. The last few years have been a wonderful time for us as a family - and the house now seems way too quiet!
Huw Sayer, Norwich, England
In Scotland the cut-off date is the end of February. A child who is 4 by the end of February MAY start school in the following August. However it is not compulsory. If a child is not 5 by the start of the winter term (ie in August) then they may be held back and start the following year when they are 5+half. Thus no child in a reception class will be younger than 4+half at the very lease, and some, with early March birthdays, will be 5+half. Our youngest son was born at the end of December and did not start school proper till he was 5yrs8 months. The English system of allowing children who are only just 4 to start school seems crazy to me.
Jean Jones, Edinburgh,
I kept my son at home until he was 5 because we enjoyed learning in a more interactive fashion (museums castles, experiments at home....) but my daughter was ready for school much earlier at 3. Every child is different and a one style fits all education will never suit- hence the choice between home education or school, montossori, nursery, playgroup or even more individualistic childminders. Each style will suit a different child and parents need to take the time to discover what syle of learning suits their child best.
Kerry, Berkshire, UK
Sarah - you should make clear in your post that there's school and there's "school" - "school" being where you go at age 3 in France but is in reality a nursery or baby school, and school being where you start at six but start learning the academic basics. They might be in the same building, and 3-year-olds might attend the same school as 6-year-olds in France, but the nature of their schools is very different. Virginie has made this clearer.
Bianca S, Maidenhead,
I was forced by a Court of Law to place my child into Reception clasess this year when he is aged four. Myself being raised in Scandinavia find this unrealistic. The Court's judgement hinged on the necessity of the child's mother being required to work regular office hours and thus she needed the convenience of placing the young child into full time reception, despite my arguments before the Court almost exactly as those presented above. Very little to about education outcomes in my opinion.
Mr P. Ott, Manchester, UK
mrs bruton's assertion that children in france begin their education at age 6 is incorrect. it is also noted that she has left france out of the age table at end end of her somewhat self-delusional article. in france children go to kindergarten when they no longer need nappies, usually before their 4th birthday. the formal learning process begins soon after their 4th birthday and, in general, they are expected to be literate around their 5th birthday and numerate at 7. it is generally accepted that children between the ages of (say) 4 and 10 years have a vast learning capacity, the highest and most intense in their whole lives. in india, for example they are taught foreign languages, algebra and calculus and are competent very early. in japan it is even more intensive. it is noteworthy that sweden has serious social problems. it has to be suspected that mrs bruton is looking for reasons to keep her child at home (he seems to be an only child, up to now).
bruce condell, apt, france
in Italy kids start primary school at the age of 6,after two different kind of nursery school. sometimes is it possible to send kids to school when they're five,but teachers notice the difference:in this years,kids are very different and grow up fast year to year.Many kids are to teachers obviously too little,and they understand this difference eith their classmates.That's why most of younger kids become "older"in few weeks,to be on pair with older classmates.they always want to demonstrate they're old enough,they stop being childern.this goes against pedagogical ideas...
giulia, parma, italy
I have to agree with Sarah. In France most children start school the year they turn 3. So my son who was born on November, and was not yet 3 when he started fulltime school. Perhaps one of the reasons why France has a high percentage of working Mums compared to Germany for example where school starts much later and lots of Mums have to stay at hole due to lack of adequate child care… but that’s another article all in it’s self
Pauline, Paris , France
I was forced by a Court of Law to place my child into Reception clasess this year when he is aged four.
Myself being raised in Scandinavia, I find this unrealistic.
The Court's judgement hinged on the necessity of the child's mother being required to work regular office hours. She needed the convenience of placing the young child into full time reception as a result. I argued to the Court almost exactly as the article does against so early a start.
Thus, Reception classes at four has very little to about education in my opinion.
Mr P. Ott, Manchester, UK
i dissagree. because while starting school young. it gets kids ready and gives them more time to learn all that they can learn...
alissia palacios, lansing, united states, michigan
Surely another reason why people are so keen to get their children off to school at an early age is so they can go back to work and help pay off the mortgage? When I was small, I had an hour in a play group on Tuesday mornings and on Thursday mornings. No kindergarten was available in my area. Mind you, my mum being German, she thought I was much too young so I started school when I was 3 months shy of my 6th birthday.
On the other hand, I did feel rather isolated due to the lack of kindergarten facilities where I could have mingled with other children. This feeling of isolation has never really left me.
Tina, Duesseldorf, Germany
Teachers are not substitute mothers, they are too temporal. Spare your child the anguish of early school and keep him/her at home. Spend as much time with your children as possible, soon you will wonder where they are!!
Virginia, Brisbane, Australia
I am Belgian. School is compulsary as from the age of 6 but most children start school at the age of 3 with the kindergarden school.
Virginie, Hannut, Belgium
Our little girl starts school today and has only just turned five. A year ago she was clearly too young so we kept her at home with Mum. She now seems hungry to learn and we are comfortable for her to start school. We have been through a lot to find a decent school. I certainly agree that children are entering childcare and school early for largely economic reasons. We decided to chase values - not money.
Charlie, Ramsey,
I am a French national and I can assure you that, while at 6 years old, school becomes compulsory, a lot of people send their kids to school very early starting preschool at the age of 2) to avoid paying for childcare. Last year , they passed a law to prevent the 2 year olds to be put to school and it now starts at the age of three. When I was in France people were absolutely shocked that I was keeping my 3 year old son at home with me rather than sending him to preschool 4 days a week from 8.30-11.30 am to 1.30-4.30 pm, which is a lot. I think it's absolutely ridiculous to impose that on young children. Most of them will study for 18 years so what's the rush?
Marie Lancaster, Canberra, Australia
With every upside is a downside. The benefits of early learning is beneficial to the detriment of the mental anguish of being separated from mum. My son who is now 22 and studying avonics engineering went to playschool at two and a half and kindergarten at 3 years old. He still remembers going on the school bus as l waved to him with my new baby in arms. That is how much it has effected him emotionally although he has excelled academically. There is a balance in life and l believe children should start school at about 5 years old. There is no going back to being 3 and 4 and they should enjoy their precious time with mum and other siblings in the safe clean environment of a loving home. To this day, he felt he was being sent away because of the new baby and has a deep resentment. . We are not animals, we are emotional complex beings and should be treated as such. Time flies so enjoy your time with your babies and children as you will wonder what happened to all those years.
Virginia, Brisbane, Australia
The Department for Children, Skills and Families (DCSF) says: “The formal school starting age of 5 has served children well for decades and standards in our primary schools have never been higher."
Why then are about 40% of children leaving primary schoolunable to read and write properly? Why are the Tories suggesting these children take an extra year before going on to secondary school?
The cukltural differences across Europe are not so striking as to invalidate a comparison between the results of earlier or later starting ages. Across the Europe, the results are solid that later starting means better results.
Anyone who looks carefully at most 4 year olds has to recognise they are not fitted for being slung into the aggression and complexity of school. The writer seems to conclude by sending her baby son to school purely because she's caving into her child's excited fantasies. He has NO IDEA what school is like and it's HER job to protect him from his ignorance.
Shan Morgain, Newport, Wales, UK
Actually children in France start school in the September of the year in which they turn 3 i.e. aged 2 3/4 -> 3 3/4.
Sarah, Saint Louis, France,