Teaching methods in England and France - an overview

Why compare the school systems of different countries? What lessons can be learned?

Why is this issue important?

Much work goes into developing and refining the education system, but teachers can find it hard to change their current practice and take on board new ideas. Comparing the English education system with other countries is a valuable way of helping teachers explore teaching and learning strategies, their effectiveness and the beliefs that underpin teachers’ practices.

What did the research show?

When the researchers compared English and French pupil’s performance, they found they had different strengths and weaknesses in literacy and mathematics. In literacy, English pupils were better at reading comprehension, use of homonyms (words which have the same spelling but different meanings, such as bear and bare), technical aspects of writing (handwriting, spelling and punctuation), and purpose and organisation in story writing. French children made greater use of sophisticated syntactic structures and literary expressions. In maths, English children were better at shape, space and measurement and applying their maths knowledge in problem solving. French children’s strengths in maths were with computation (addition, division, multiplication, and understanding place value and decimal points).

English and French pupils’ attitudes towards school and work also differed. Whilst English pupils regarded work as a collaborative effort and recognised the important social role it played in their current lives, French pupils saw school work as an individual pursuit involving cognitive skills, and regarded schooling as preparation for their future careers. Interestingly, (given the findings about their teachers’ didactic teaching style reported in the next section) French pupils found school work relatively more interesting and more fun than English children.

How was it achieved?

Key differences were identified between English and French teaching styles. Whilst French teaching was teacher-led consisting mostly of whole class activities with some individual pupil work, English teachers promoted small group and pair work. The teachers’ beliefs about what constituted equality of opportunity (underpinning their teaching styles) also differed. French teachers held the belief that “every child has the right to have access to the same educational experience”, while English teachers differentiated their practice to the needs of the individual child. It was apparent that despite attempts to introduce reform at the time of the study, teachers in both countries showed a resistance to change.

How was the research designed to be trustworthy?

The study involved a sample of 400 French and 400 English pupils aged nine to eleven years. All the children involved in the study completed a questionnaire investigating their perceptions and understandings about teaching, school, national identity and citizenship. Pupils also sat literacy and mathematics tests and researchers conducted classroom observations and interviews.

What are the implications?

The study shows:

• that pupils’ classroom experiences are connected to their attitudes to schooling
• the importance of keeping the focus on enjoyment and engagement in the classroom while at the same time maintaining effortful learning
• cultural factors, such as national identity and citizenship, influence teaching and learning styles
• that encouraging teachers to change practice requires them to explore their underlying values and beliefs
• the importance of teachers engaging with the reasons behind educational policy in order to bring about change.

What do the case studies illustrate?

The case studies show:

• how children may encounter difficulties if they focus on rule based approaches to problem solving in mathematics without at the same time developing number sense, pointing to the benefits of developing children’s computational skills, the way French schools do
• the practical benefits of supporting pupil self-esteem which the study found was an important aspect of English primary education
• how whole class reading sessions can enhance children’s vocabulary and syntax when writing their own stories
• how teachers are influenced by their cultural background in the way they assess pupils as well as the way they organise learning.