Grammar school

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A grammar school is a term most often used in the United Kingdom and Australia for a secondary school, in which college preparatory subjects, such as Latin and Greek, are emphasized. In the United States, grammar school is sometimes used colloquially to refer to an elementary or "middle school", although the term Elementary school is the official terminology for a school that teaches from kindergarten to around fifth or sixth grade.

History

In mediaeval times, the importance of Latin in government and religion meant there was a strong demand to learn the language. Schools were set up to teach the basis of Latin grammar, calling themselves ‘grammar schools’. The first such schools appeared in Anglo-Saxon times, but the majority of them were founded after the fifteenth century. Significantly, these schools were often separate from the church, unlike cathedral schools and hence survived the Reformation. Pupils were usually educated up to the age of 14, after which they would look to universities and the church for further study. Some new schools were founded and other schools which were associated with the church were refounded with the proceeds of the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII.

In the absence of civic authorities, grammar schools were established as acts of charity, either by private benefactors or corporate bodies such as guilds. Many of these are still commemorated in annual "Founder's Day" services and ceremonies at surviving schools. Edward VI also made an important contribution to grammar schools, founding a series of schools during his reign (see King Edward's School), and James I founded a series of "Royal Schools" in Ulster, beginning with The Royal School, Armagh. In spite of these donations, the schools relied on fees paid by the students.

Teaching usually took place from dawn to dusk, and focused heavily upon the rote learning of Latin. In order to encourage fluency, some schoolmasters recommended punishing any pupil who spoke in English. It would be several years before pupils were able to construct a sentence, and they would be in their final years at the school when they began translating passages. By the end of their studies, they would be quite familiar with the great Latin authors, as well as the studies of drama and rhetoric.

Other skills, such as numeracy and handwriting, were neglected, being taught in odd moments or by travelling specialist teachers such as scriveners. Little attention was given to other classical languages, such as Greek, due in part to a shortage of non-Latin type and of teachers fluent in the language.Later the curriculum was considerably broadened to include other languages, such as Greek, Hebrew, English and European languages, as well as the natural sciences, mathematics, history, geography and other subjects.

Victorian grammar schools

The revolution in civic government that took place in the late 19th century created a new breed of grammar schools. After the Endowed Schools Act 1869, it became markedly easier to set up a school. At the time, there was a great emphasis on the importance of self-improvement, and parents keen for their children to receive a decent education took a lead in organising the creation of new schools. Many took the title "grammar school" for historical reasons.

Grammar schools thus emerged as one part of the highly varied education system of England, Wales and Northern Ireland before 1944. These newer schools tended to emulate the great public schools, copying their curriculum, ethos and ambitions. Many schools also adopted the idea of entrance exams and scholarship places for poorer students. This meant that they offered able children from poor backgrounds an opportunity to get a good education.

Grammar schools in the Tripartite System

The 1944 Butler Education Act created the first nationwide system of secondary education in England and Wales, echoed by the Education (Northern Ireland) Act 1947. Three types of schools were planned, one of which was the grammar school. Intended to teach an academic curriculum to intellectually able children who did well in their eleven plus examination, the grammar school soon established itself as the best tier in the Tripartite System.

Two types of grammar school existed under the system. Most were either newly created or built since the Victorian period. They emulated the older grammar schools and sought to replicate the studious, aspirational atmosphere found in such establishments.

In addition to those run fully by the state, there were 179 Direct Grant Grammar Schools. These took between one quarter and one half of their pupils from the state system, and the rest from fee-paying parents. They also exercised far greater freedom from local authorities, and were members of the Headmasters' Conference. These schools included some very old schools, encouraged to partake in the Tripartite System, and achieved the best academic results of any state schools. The most famous example of a Direct Grant Grammar was Manchester Grammar School, whose headmaster, Lord James of Rusholme, was one of the most outspoken advocates of the Tripartite System.

Grammar school pupils were given the best opportunities of any schoolchildren. Initially they studied for the School Certificate and Higher School Certificate, replaced in 1951 by General Certificate of Education examinations at O-level (Ordinary level) and A-level (Advanced level). In contrast, very few students at secondary modern schools took public examinations until the introduction of the less academic Certificate of Secondary Education (known as the CSE) in the 1960s. Grammar schools possessed better facilities and received more funding than their secondary modern counterparts. Until the implementation of the Robbins Report in the 1960s, children from public and grammar schools effectively monopolised access to university. These schools were also the only ones that offered an extra term of school to prepare pupils for the competitive entrance exams for Oxbridge.

The Tripartite System was largely abolished in England and Wales between 1965, with the issue of Circular 10/65, and the 1976 Education Act. Most grammar schools were amalgamated with a number of other local schools, to form neighbourhood comprehensive schools, though a few were closed. This process proceeded quickly in Wales, with the closure of such schools as Cowbridge Grammar School. In England, implementation was more uneven, with some counties and individual schools resisting the change.

Direct Grant Grammar Schools almost invariably severed their ties with the state sector, and became fully independent. There are thus many schools with the name "grammar," but which are not free. These schools normally select their pupils by an entrance examination, and sometimes an interview.

While many former grammar schools ceased to be selective, some of them retained the word "grammar" in their name. Most of these schools remain comprehensive, while a few became partially selective or fully selective in the 1990s.

Australia

In Australia, "grammar schools" are generally high-cost non-government Protestant private schools. Those using the term "grammar" in their title are often the oldest Protestant school in their area.

Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, secondary schools primarily offering a traditional curriculum (instead of vocational subjects) are grammar schools.

Republic of Ireland

Education in the Republic of Ireland, and Northern Ireland, has been mainly organised on denominational lines. Grammar schools along the lines of those in Great Britain were set up for members of the Church of Ireland prior to its disestablishment in 1871. Some schools remain, as private schools catering largely for Protestant students. These are often fee-paying and accommodate boarders, given the scattered nature of the Protestant population in much of Ireland. Such schools include those in Bandon, Drogheda (run by Quakers since 1956), Dundalk and Sligo. Others are among the many former fee-paying schools which have been absorbed into larger state-funded Community Schools, Community Colleges, and Comprehensive Schools, founded since the introduction of universal secondary education in the Republic by minister Donagh O'Malley in the 1960s. Examples include Cork Grammar School, replaced by Ashton Comprehensive School.

United Kingdom

By the late mediæval period in Britain there were many schools teaching Latin grammar. In England the Tudor King Edward VI reorganised these schools or instituted new ones so that there was a national system of "free grammar schools" that were in theory open to all and offered free tuition to those who could not afford to pay fees. The vast majority of poor children did not attend these schools since their labour was economically valuable to their families.

In the late Victorian period grammar schools were reorganised and their curriculum was modernised, although Latin was still taught.

Following the Education Act 1944 the Tripartite System was established, similar to the European tiered school system. This placed the grammar school as the place of education for the academically gifted (as determined by the eleven plus exam). Other children attended technical schools or secondary modern schools. The system became controversial in the post-war years. Critics condemned it as being elitist and defenders claimed that grammar schools allow pupils to obtain a good education through merit rather than through family income. In the mid-1960s the then Labour Government tried to restrict or abolish grammar schools by requiring local authorities to introduce comprehensive schools. Following this, some grammar schools became fully independent and charged fees, while still usually retaining "grammar school" in their title. However, many grammar schools continue to be state run.

The 11 plus exam has since been abolished in most parts of the UK but it remains in Northern Ireland and some English counties such as Kent, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Trafford, Wiltshire, The Wirral and Lincolnshire and London boroughs such as Bromley and Redbridge, despite so far unsuccessful attempts by campaigners to have it abolished there too. Grammar schools are selective, typically taking the top 10% of those from the local catchment area. Some grammar schools in the United Kingdom can trace their history back to earlier than the 16th century.

A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom. Four distinct uses of the word can be noted, the first two referring to ordinary schools set up in the age before compulsory secondary education, and two referring to selective schools thereafter. Arguably the most well-known grammar schools were those of the Tripartite System (also known colloquially as the grammar-school system), which existed in England and Wales from the mid-1940s to the late 1960s, and still exists in Northern Ireland.

United States

In the United States, the term has often been used as a synonym for elementary school, although this usage is somewhat in decline.

External links

• A general timeline of British education
• Links on Elizabethan education
• The situation of grammar schools today
• National Grammar Schools Association
• Support Kent Schools
• An article on advanced schools and other advanced sections of the English secondary system.
• Commentary by The Guardian about grammar schools today

• A general timeline of British education
• Links on Elizabethan education
• The situation of grammar schools today
• National Grammar Schools Association
• Support Kent Schools
• An article on advanced schools and other advanced sections of the English secondary system.
• Commentary by The Guardian about grammar schools today
• say NO to selection!
• Campaign for Fair Admissions
• Ian Schagen (November 2001). "The impact of the structure of secondary education in Slough". National Foundation for Educational Research. Retrieved 2008-03-20.

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