Long live the small class

Tekst Franka Hummels - Redactie Onderwijsblad - 2 juli 2020 - 6 Minuten om te lezen

Picture: Type tank

For years, smaller classes have been the dream of many a teacher. Last month they were suddenly there. But not in the way you dreamed. The schools were closed between March 16 and May 11 to prevent further spread of the corona virus. And between May 11 and June 8, primary schools were only allowed to receive children again at half speed. Secondary schools could also reopen at half speed from 2 June. The situation was too short and exceptional for a thorough analysis. But what lessons can be learned from the experience?

Space

There was more physical space, exactly what was intended because of corona. Bram van Mil represents a combination group 7/8 in Rijswijk. Normally he has 27 children in front of him, a month ago always eleven or twelve. “Children in groups 7 and 8 are really becoming long lices. They unintentionally sit with their elbow in the ribs of the neighbor. We were not bothered by that at the time. ” Rianne Looijesteijn has a group of 6 in Noord-Scharwoude. “If two in a class with twelve children are easily distracted, you can completely separate them. In a group of 24 you may have five who are not paying attention. You can never completely separate them. ”

Pay attention

Pay attention, that generally works better in a small class. Tom van Esch, school leader and teacher of group 7 in Boxtel: “Keeping order is more informal. Normally we used a gesture for 'silence'. That was no longer necessary in the small class, the children were just silent when I announced that I would tell something. ” Iris van Meeteren thinks that her combination group 6/7/8 in the Haarlemmermeer was also quieter because there was less buzz: everyone hears when a child whispers something to another. If her class with 29 children is at full strength, that is not the case.

Normally we used a gesture for 'silence'. That was no longer necessary in the small class

Other children, on the other hand, are less silent in the small class, noted Van Esch: "I saw children who you normally don't hear very much assert themselves." Van Mil: “I have two children with an autism spectrum disorder in my class. They stayed less in the background. And one of them usually has a time-out every hour to process all the stimuli. That was not necessary in the small group. ”

Attention

Of course the children in a smaller group get more attention. In the normal situation, Looijesteijn often does not have access to guidance with the enriched offer, but it does now. Van Mil calculates that with 27 students he will pay attention to each child for two minutes every hour. "Then there is always one waiting, or someone does not understand something and tries to solve it themselves."

Biny van Kammen teaches 27 students in grades 3 and 4 in Achtkarspel. Last month, those two groups stopped attending school together. A world of difference, Van Kammen noticed. “Normally, once I have instructed one group, I have to immediately continue with the instruction for the other. So they have to work with the material themselves. Now I really had the time to see how it worked and I could sit with them if they got stuck. ” This made everything more efficient, she noticed. “Because the atmosphere was also more relaxed, we had a lot of time for other things. For example, I went outside with group 3 for a picnic. ”

Because the atmosphere was also more relaxed, we had a lot of time left for other things

Van Kammen also works as an internal supervisor. During this period, she was less often called upon, she notes. “The group teachers now had time for that extra bit of attention themselves. For some children it is nice that they did not have to be removed from the classroom. ”

Relax

At the school in Vleuten, where Marjolein van Kempen represents group 3, an unconventional choice was made: whole groups came to school half the time. They then had two teachers and two classrooms at their disposal. While one devoted himself to the class, the other could withdraw with a small group in the other room. “That is different from the way class assistants are. They are often not qualified teachers and they are, for example, in the hallway or in another troubled room. ”

This system also reduced the workload for Van Kempen. “While I was giving instructions, my colleague was already checking. Very relaxed. ” Looijesteijn: “Sometimes I looked around in amazement at half past four, am I really ready yet? I gained time with little things. The fabric was finished earlier, so I let the kids play hangman between a quarter to two and two. I would already put my lesson for the next day on the board. ” Looijesteijn does not only attribute the increased rest to half the class. “We had to improvise. I therefore experienced less pressure from above. I spent less time on accountability. ”

We had to improvise. I therefore experienced less pressure from above

To care

Was everything positive then? No definitely not. All teachers also took care of the other half of the class when they were at home and those students were no longer guided with distance learning. Everyone was concerned about group formation. That was one of the arguments of Van Kempen's Vleutense school not to split the groups.
But a smaller class also has disadvantages in the 'normal' situation. “School is also there for social development,” says Tom van Esch, for example. "In a smaller class it is more difficult to find someone with whom you click exactly."

Was everything positive then? No definitely not

Iris van Meeteren: “It is important that children can sometimes be a bit sneaky. When they pass notes to each other, I naturally think that's very cute. But as a teacher I should be against it. Usually I pretend I don't see anything. But in the small class, the kids saw it all, and saw that I saw it too, so I had to perform. The children had really lost part of their freedom. ”

Not safe

Secondary education could open again at half speed from 2 June. The school where Ellen van der Leeden works had previous experience. She teaches drawing and technology to children who do not speak Dutch well and who are being prepared for regular secondary education and MBO. Her school could have stayed open, but because parents kept their children at home, the school was closed until May 18. Van der Leeden was on the committee that had to consider how education could be tackled during corona time. Since 2 June, there have been only five half groups at the school at a time, each with its own entrance, bicycle shed, toilet and classroom. That works well, she thinks.

During the pandemic, her subjects were dropped. She now teaches math and language temporarily. Nevertheless, the new method gives her ideas for the future. If she teaches technology, that is because 22 students without an assistant. “That is way too much, it is actually not safe. I want that from now on with half a class. Then they unfortunately have fewer lessons, but in any case in a good environment. ”

All in all, enthusiasm about the smaller groups is great. However, several teachers warn, there is a risk that small classes will be viewed with rose-colored glasses. Biny van Kammen: "I was so happy that we were allowed to go again, that I saw the children again!"

This article appeared in the Education Magazine of July 2020. All AObmembers receive the magazine monthly in the mail.