Do children learn better in small classes?

I read an article last week on the BPS website which was researching to see if children were learning better in smaller classes.  According to this article, young children achieve more and are more profitable to society after being educated in small size classes.  The Institute for Evaluation of Labor Market and Education Policy in Sweden conducted a research on children aged between 9 and 11.  While set in small groups their results were better and they were more likely to earn more money after starting work.  When young people were set in small groups, their cognitive and non-cognitive skills were better and they scored higher on the national standardised test (BPS, 2012).

In 1995, Mosteller did a study in Tennessee on the effect of class size in early school grades.  They wanted investigate into the effect of this in long-term as well as short.  Nye (1999) did a follow-up five years later and they discovered that being part of a small class effected the pupils directly and it’s effect were still seen five years later.

Glass (1982) discovered five things – 1) that class size correlated with pupils’ success. 2) Small classes tend to improve a child’s performance better. 3) Small classes offer more opportunities to change the learning programme for the individuals’ needs. 4) The teacher has better spirit when teaching a small class. 5) Children in small classes has more interest in learning.  The reasons given for the five points above are because the teacher spends more time with the children individually.

According to Dr Ioan Rees, a psychologist, this isn’t necessarily true in every situation.  If the teacher is teaching badly, the pupil will suffer whether the class is big or small.  I agree with Dr Rees because if I had the choice between a good teacher in a big class or a bad teacher in a small class I’d prefer the good teacher in the big class.

According to Blatchfor and Mortimore (1994), on average, the size of classes increases every year.  The Government says that there are no correlation between class size and pupils’ progress.  This journal also states that class size only effects young children and I agree with this.  If a child is supported in his first years at school, especially disadvantaged children as they need more attention.  If there are less children in the class, every child will receive more attention but as children grow older, I think this is less appropriate, unless the child is disadvantaged, as it it important for children to be independent and ask for help as they need it and not being provided with everything.

I know from my experience at primary school which had big classes that I never missed out on attention and my learning progress was good.  What is your experience?

Blatchford, P., & Mortimore, P. (1994). The Issue of Class Size for Young Children in Schools: what can we learn from research? Oxford Review of Education, 20(4), 411-428. doi:10.1080/0305498940200402.

Children learn better in smaller classes. (2012). Retrieved March 12, 2012, from http://www.bps.org.uk/news/children-do-better-smaller-classes

Glass, G.V. et al. (1982). School Class Size: Research and Policy. Education Resources Information Center, 1-160.

Mosteller, F. (1995). The Tennessee Study of Class Size in the Early School Grades. The Future of Children, 5(2), 113-127.

Nye, B. (1999). The Long-Term Effects of Small Classes: A Five-Year Follow-Up of the Tennessee Class Size Experiment. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 21(2), 127-142. doi:10.3102.01623737021002127

 

Pa mor llwyddiannus yw’r defnydd o therapi celf yn y maes salwch meddwl?

Yr wythnos diwethaf cyhoeddodd y BPS erthygl ynglŷn â therapi celf.  Ychydig iawn yr oeddwn i yn ei wybod am y cynllun hwn ond roeddwn wedi cymryd yn ganiataol ei fod yn cael effaith gadarnhaol ar gleifion.  Ar wefan ‘Art Therapy’ maent yn ei ddyfynnu fel “form of expressive therapy that uses the creative process of making art to improve a person’s physical, mental, and emotional well-being.”  Yn ôl y wefan, roedd Prifysgol Granada yn Sbaen wedi darganfod bod therapi celf yn helpu i drin salwch meddwl.  Cydweithiodd Elizaberta Perez am dros flwyddyn efo 20 person oedd yn dioddef o salwch meddwl difrifol.  Yn y sesiynau oedd yn cael eu cynnal ddwywaith yr wythnos roeddent yn addasu lluniau arlunwyr megis Van Gogh a Munch gan ychwanegu eu gweledigaethau eu hunain at y lluniau gan adlewyrchu eu dymuniadau, teimladau a’u hemosiynau.  Yn ogystal â helpu’r cleifion yn feddyliol, roedd hefyd yn helpu yn gorfforol ac emosiynol wrth reoli ymddygiad, lleihau straen, datblygu sgiliau rhyngbersonol a chynyddu hunan-barch a hunanymwybyddiaeth. 

 

Roedd y wefan Mind o blaid y therapi hefyd gan ei fod yn helpu pobl i gyfleu teimladau sy’n anodd eu cyfleu drwy eiriau gan helpu i wneud synnwyr o brofiadau bywyd a’u stadau  meddyliol.  Mae NICE yn awgrymu defnyddio therapi celf yn eu canllawiau ar gyfer sgitsoffrenia am mai dyma’r unig driniaeth sy’n effeithio ar gyfer eu symptomau negyddol.  Yn ôl Thomas Merton, mae celf yn “allows us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” 

 

Yn y ffilm ‘It’s kind of a funny story’ mae bachgen 16 oed sy’n dioddef o salwch yn mynychu dosbarthiadau therapi celf ac mae’n amlwg yn y ffilm sut mae celf yn gallu gwneud i unigolyn deimlo’n well a balch o’u hun.  Gwnaeth Byers (1996) ymchwil ar therapi celf efo plant 4-15, teuluoedd a gweithwyr yn y maes salwch meddwl oedd yn dioddef o PTSD o ganlyniad i’r gwrthryfel yn y West Bank a Gaza.  Darganfuwyd bod effaith seicolegol rhyfel a thrais ar y bobl a’r plant yn amlwg yn eu gwaith.  Darganfyddodd Lusebrink (2004) bod cysylltiad rhwng mynegi celf a gweithred yr ymennydd.  Mewn lluniau o’r ymennydd roedd yn amlwg bod celf yn symbylu’r synhwyrau.

 

Er bod y canlyniadau uchod i gyd yn profi pa mor llwyddiannus yw therapi celf, yn ôl erthygl y BPS nid yw therapi celf o unrhyw fudd i bobl efo sgitsoffrenia.  Maent yn cwestiynu canllawiau NICE gan nad oes yr un ymchwiliwr o Brydain wedi darganfod gwahaniaeth mewn symptomau’r cleifion wedi’r ymyrraeth.  Er eu bod yn erbyn y cynllun, maent yn cytuno y gallai fod o fantais i rai unigolion fyddai’n cadw at y rhaglen gan y gallai adeiladu eu hyder, gwella eu cyfathrebu ac yn eu gwahardd o’r we am amser.  Roedd yr American Cancer Society hefyd yn anghytuno efo therapi celf ar un llaw gan ei fod yn gallu codi hen deimladau annifyr ac mewn rhai achosion lle mae’r therapi i’w weld yn gweithio, bydd y cleifion yn osgoi neu hyd yn oed dileu eu gofal meddygol sy’n gallu arwain at ganlyniadau iechyd difrifol gan ganolbwyntio ar eu therapi celf. 

 

Yn amlwg mae dwy ochr i ddefnyddio therapïau fel hyn.  Yn fy marn i, rwy’n credu eu bod yn llwyddiannus gan fy mod wedi cael profiad o weld aelod o’r teulu yn defnyddio’r dull hwn mewn cartref henoed ac roedd yn gadarnhaol iawn tuag at y therapi.  Er hynny, rwy’n deall y gall fod yn beryglus pan fod pobl yn dileu eu gofal iechyd er mwyn canolbwyntio arno ac fel nifer o weithgareddau eraill ac yn amlwg ni fyddai celf at ddant pawb felly ni fyddai’n llwyddiannus i bawb.

 

Byers, J.G. (1996). Children of the stones: Art therapy interventions in the West Bank. Art Therapy, 13(4), 238-243.

Can art therapy help mental illness. (01/03/2012) Retrieved from http://www.bps.org.uk/news/art-therapy-and-mental-illness

Lusebrink, V.B. (2004). Art Therapy and the Brain: An Attempt to Understand the Underlying Processes of Art Expression in Therapy. Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 21(3), 125-135.

Making sense of Art Therapies. (n.d.)  Retrieved from http://www.mind.org.uk/help/medical_and_alternative_care/arts_therapies

Mental illness treated with art therapy. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.arttherapyblog.com/mental-health/mental-illness-treated-with-art-therapy