Revision Session:The Government & Education Why did it intervene and what did it do ?

What existed before ? Before 1833 the government had a laissez-faire attitude; they did not feel the need to get involved with education for the working classes. Schools did exist for the rich and for the middle classes. Charity Schools, Dame Schools and Sunday Schools had all provided some education for the poor.

What existed before ? Monitorial Schools had been started at the beginning of the C19th.and had proved very popular. The setting up of 2 Voluntary Societies in 1808 & 1811 meant more monitorial schools were built. The National Society (which aimed to teach the beliefs of the Anglican religion) had built 3,500 schools by 1830.

So why did the government change its attitude ? The Government of the time were keen on reform; in 1834 they passed the Poor Law Amendment Act; in 1835 they passed the Municipal Corporations Act. In 1833 the first effective Factory Act was passed. This Act stopped children under 9 working in mills and said they should have 2 hours of schooling every day. But this meant that there needed to be more schools for them to go to.

What did the government do ? They decided to give money; this was to go to the Voluntary Societies to help them build more schools. The amount was £20,000 – which was not a great deal ! However, this was the first time that the government had taken responsibility for education. It was a start !

Short answer questions A typical question (from 2003) is :- Why did the government make a grant of £20,000 for education in 1833 ? (6) Could you answer this now using the previous information ?

What did the government do next ? In 1839 they gave more money - £30,000. However, they also wanted to check that this was being spent wisely; to do this they set up a committee, called The Committee of the Privy Council. This was like an Education Department. The secretary was Dr. James Kay-Shuttleworth. Inspectors were appointed to see that the money was spent wisely.

Notice the pattern ! The government gives money but also wants to monitor how it is spent. Inspectors are appointed – just like they were for factories. Once they get involved in education they start to notice the problems and so try to solve them. They have accepted the need for more schools – but realise there are not enough teachers.

Teacher Training The monitorial system which was used by the Voluntary Societies, only needed one teacher. However, although this meant these schools were cheap it also meant they were criticised. People like Robert Owen argued that they did not teach children properly; Dr Kay-Shuttleworth accepted that something had to be done. His solution was to set up a training scheme.

Teacher Training This training scheme was designed to provide trained teachers without spending too much money. So, a Pupil-Teacher System was developed; this meant that older students (usually over 13) worked as apprentice teachers, helping to teach younger children in the day and studying at night.

Teacher Training The Pupil-Teachers were encouraged to take exams and then to go to a Training College; the first one was set up in Battersea in This meant that the government was now taking on more responsibility by insisting that teachers were trained. In 1844 a Factory Act shortened the hours children could work in mills even more; the 1842 Mines Act had also cut hours for boys & girls. So, there was more time available for education.

Short answer questions In what ways was education changed as a result of the Revised Code in 1862 ? In order to gain the full 7 marks for this question what do you need to do ? Explain what led to the Revised Code; Explain what the Revised Code was; Say how it was different to what existed before.

What led to the Revised Code ? By 1858 the government was spending a lot of money on education. Some people were concerned that it was not being spent sensibly. As usual, when it wants to investigate something, the government set up a Commission; this one was called The Newcastle Commission.

The Newcastle Commission The report of this commission found that many poor children were still not going to school on a regular basis. It was horrified that standards of teaching were not very good and that children didn`t seem to know much. So, the obvious solution was to make children go to school and put pressure on the teachers to do a better job.

The Revised Code This Revised (or new) system was set up in Schools would be visited by inspectors in order to see how much grant or money they were to get. The inspectors tested the children in the 3R`s and checked the registers for attendance. So, this system was called Payment by Results as teachers wages depended on how many children passed the tests and came to school.

How did this system change things for children ? Teachers taught to the test; this often meant learning by rote Other subjects tended to be ignored. There was cheating and false entries in registers. Children were limited in their education; they were only taught what they needed to know for the type of job they would get.

Any other changes ? The new system also involved a new department set up in London. This was called the Department of Education. The man in charge was Robert Lowe. The immediate effect was that the grants to schools dropped by nearly £200,000.

Essay Question In what ways did government involvement in education change from 1870 to 1900 ? You may use the following information to help you with your answer Forster`s Education Act 1876 Sandon`s Education Act Higher Grade Schools End of the Revised Code

Essay Question Remember: 1: The four points in the box will always be in the correct order. 2: Use the four points as a plan. 3: You do not have to use all four points if you cannot remember anything about one of them. 4: The four points are not a complete answer. If you stick to them, you will only get a Level 2 mark. 5: If you want to reach Level 3, you will need to include own knowledge and explain how the events are linked together.

Essay Question So, what is missing ? Perhaps you could include Mundella`s Act or the Act of 1891; together these made education compulsory to the age of 10 and made it free.

Forster`s Act of 1870 Why was it passed ? The working classes had been given the vote in Germany & the USA seemed to be developing faster than Britain. The Industrial Revolution meant that there was a lot of advanced technology for workers to use. The population had grown and there were not enough Voluntary Schools to meet the demand. All these reasons meant that people needed to read & write.

What did the Act say ? It decided that Voluntary Schools could build new church schools within 6 months. They would get extra money to do so. After 6 months the government would identify where there were gaps; any places that did not have a Voluntary School would get a new Board School. These were state schools and were funded by local councils who could raise money from ratepayers to build them.

What were these Board Schools like ? They were to be non-denominational; they were not to teach any particular religion. They could be free if the councils wanted this; in practice most schools did charge fees. They could be compulsory for children aged 5-13, but most were not.

What did Sandon`s Act say ? Parents were made responsible for their childrens ` education; they were supposed to send them to school. The Attendance Committees set up by this act could pay the fees of poor parents.

What were Higher Grade Schools ? These could be set up by School Boards. They were designed to provide more education at Higher Levels. This meant that children would have opportunities to get more qualifications and so get a better job.

Mundella`s Act This made attendance at school compulsory for children aged Parents still had to pay. Education was not free until 1891.

The end of the Revised Code This ended in By 1900 children had to stay at school until they were 12. By the beginning of the C20th School Boards were replaced by Local Education Autorities.

The Essay Question Remember You need to link all these 4 (or 5) pieces of information together. Look back at the details of each one and work out what the link is.