Big classrooms are bad for less-able pupils

London, Mar 23 : Large class sizes in English schools are damaging the prospects of less-able children, a new study suggests.

According to the research by the London Institute of Education, pupils struggle to concentrate and have little interaction with the teacher due to the big size of the classrooms.

In the study, the researchers found that adding five pupils to a class in schools increased the likelihood that less academic children would be 'off task' by 40 per cent, reports the Telegraph.

Those pupils were twice as likely to misbehave in classes of 30, a size that is common in state schools, as they were in classes of 15, a size typical of the independent sector.

The study found that teachers in charge of larger classes spent more time trying to re-engage distracted pupils, indicating that all children suffered.

The findings of the study are based on close observation of 686 pupils in dozens of schools.

ANI