Why smaller class sizes are not always the answer | Letter

Letter: Retired headteacher Andrew Marsh says good teachers and a positive culture are more important than the number of pupils in a class

As a recently retired head of a small school, I feel compelled to respond to your editorial and letters on class sizes (9 February). As your editorial states, we need to be careful not to view smaller classes as a solution to all the problems with education. During my tenure, we suffered because of the perception that larger classes were inherently worse for children.

As our school grew in popularity, we experienced families moving away in search of smaller classes, which placed significant demands on our budget. Those parents did not grasp that the quality of teaching is infinitely more important than class size. If you have good teachers and a positive culture, it is possible to have high-quality interactions that support all children in a class of 30.

Your editorial mentions workload as an issue, but class size is only a small part of it: 95% of workload issues stem from school cultures, which are under significant pressure from a system that does not value the “softer” aspects such as positive relationships. Until that changes, demands on workload will still drive people out of the profession.

It is important to note that there are social advantages of class sizes being around 30. Having worked in schools with small cohorts, I am aware of the challenges they can bring for friendship groups. Children are more likely to find their tribe in a class of 30 than in a smaller setting.
Andrew Marsh
Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset

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