The Guardian view on inclusive schools: ministers should recognise that class size matters | Editorial

2026-02-03 - 18:45

Less crowded classrooms would make interacting with teachers easier, benefiting pupils including those with Send There is no single, ideal class size – just as there is no one model of the perfect teacher. But as school‐age audiences of Matilda the Musical or the Harry Potter films can testify, UK classrooms usually have more children in them than fictional ones. What these young people probably do not know is that their classrooms are also fuller than many real ones abroad. A report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found that the UK has some of the largest primary groups in the industrialised world. Does this matter, and how much? For many parents and teachers, it is common sense that smaller classes are preferable – as long as they are small by design and not because the school is an unpopular, unsuccessful one. The far lower pupil-teacher ratio of independent schools is widely viewed as giving their pupils an advantage over state-educated peers. Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...