Teaching methods in England and France: a comparison
July 2006
Introduction
Why compare the school systems of different countries? What lessons can be learned?
To read a one-page summary of this RoM, go to the overview.
When it comes to judging the progress of the nation’s education system the media tends to focus on rankings provided by international educational surveys such as the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). More detailed comparative studies, on the other hand, go further in contrasting the processes and contexts in which learning takes place. These studies can be informative for teachers wanting to explore effective teaching and learning strategies. They make the strange familiar and the familiar strange in ways that help us to review current practice and take on board new ideas.
In order to take a closer look at the value of comparative studies the RoM team have selected a piece of extensive research into the differences and similarities between French and English primary schools. The Quality of Educational Systems Transnationally (QUEST) project used specially devised literacy and mathematics assessments, as well as interviews and questionnaires, to:
- establish the ways in which pupils’ performance differed from one country to the other, and
- explore the pedagogical and cultural reasons for those differences.
The study is:
Broadfoot, P., Osborn, M., Planel, C. and Sharpe, K. (2000) Promoting Quality in Learning: Does England Have the Answer? London: Cassell
The literacy and mathematics tests the researchers developed for the study were based on the national tests of both countries and translated into English/French so that all children worked on the same items. The study’s findings on academic performance were comparable with those of the 2000 PISA survey, which found that, overall, pupils from the UK performed better than their French counterparts in literacy and mathematics.
In addition to describing classroom practice and academic performance, the study reports on the way students in England and France perceived themselves as learners and citizens.
We think the materials on children’s views of their role as citizens, and how the issue of citizenship was dealt with in the classroom may also be of interest to those practitioners with responsibility for implementing Citizenship across the curriculum.
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