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Original poster

Question regarding class sizes

26 replies

Nowfindingdory · 03/08/2016 07:24

I have an in year appeal coming up and wanted to know if there is a recommended number of pupils in science, technology and drama classes.

The school states that the governing body consider the class sizes to be too large. There are currently between 13 and 30 in science classes, 18 in drama and below 20 in technology.

OP posts:
prh47bridge · 03/08/2016 08:51

There is no official recommendation. However, the NUT and others recommend a limit of 20 pupils per class for practical subjects such as D&T, science, art and drama. There is a British Standard which states that there should be a maximum of 20 pupils with one teacher in any one work area in England & Wales for D&T (BS4163:2014). This standard suggests the same limit for practical classes in all subjects in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Compliance with this standard is not compulsory.

On the figures you give the larger science classes may be too large unless those classes are entirely devoted to theory with no practical element. The other classes appear to be within the limit.

Note that the 20 pupils per class is a recommended maximum, not a target. A school is free to run smaller classes. However, unless there are physical restrictions (e.g. small classrooms) the school may find it hard to argue that it is necessary to keep classes smaller than the recommended limit.

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