Class Sizes

In surveys carried out for ISC by MORI (Market & Opinion Research International), the main reasons stated by parents for choosing independent schools include small classes with individual attention. Classes in many independent schools are smaller than in other types of school, particularly for the younger age groups between 5 and 13.

Count the number of desks in the classes you visit. The average class in the state sector has up to 30 children. Many preparatory schools have much smaller classes with 15 to 20 pupils. Most senior independent schools have classes or teaching groups of between 20 and 25 pupils below sixth form level. Teaching groups in schools with boarders are usually smaller than in day schools. Size of class is different from pupil/teacher ratio, which includes teachers who have administrative duties and spend only part of their time teaching.

Ask to be taken into a few classrooms while teaching is in progress. Senior schools sometimes allow you only to look through a window or door. This is not unreasonable: you would not like your child's class to be interrupted too often by visitors. On the other hand, teaching is the most important activity in a school, and it is what you will be paying for. When you go to classes in junior schools, you might ask to look at a few of the children's work books.