Schools face downsizing revolution - The Observer

A report by the Observer this week highlights the problems faced by schools with such large numbers of pupils. It reads:-

Sprawling comprehensives with more than 1,500 pupils could be replaced with a series of smaller schools in an attempt to improve examination results. Andrew Adonis, the Schools Minister, said that in the United States cities such as New York had transformed test results, behaviour and attendance by cutting down the size of schools.

'I am keen to look, with an open mind, at all proposals to raise standards in schools,' he added. 'Small schools have been successful in the US and they may have a part to play here in the future, if credible proposals are forthcoming.'

The move comes as a new report, to be published on Wednesday, calls for an end to super-size comprehensives, arguing that they leave pupils overwhelmed and lost in a 'sea of anonymity'.

Full story at http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,2208999,00.html