§ Sir Ralph HowellTo ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to her answer of 25 April,Official Report, column 487, what assessment she has made of the reasons why the average size of single-teacher classes is 14W increasing, while the pupil-teacher ratio is decreasing; and if she will make a statement. [23408]
§ Mr. Robin SquirePupil-teacher ratios are calculated by dividing full-time equivalent pupil numbers by the total number of full-time equivalent qualified teaching staff. Many teachers are not engaged full-time in classroom teaching; these include head teachers and others with management and planning responsibilities, as well as teachers allocated "non-contact" time during the school day for work to support their own teaching. Average class sizes therefore reflect decisions taken at school level about how to allocate available staff time.
PTRs in January 1994 were slightly below those in 1979, while average class sizes were slightly higher. This is because the proportion of teachers' time allocated to activities other than teaching has increased over the period.
§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Education what was the pupil-teacher ratio in(a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools in each year since 1979. [23624]
§ Mr. Robin SquireThe information requested is shown in the table.
Pupil: Teacher Ratios in maintained schools in England 1979–1994 position in January each year Primary Secondary 1979 23.1 16.8 1980 22.7 16.7 1981 22.6 16.7 1982 22.5 16.7 1983 22.3 16.6 1984 22.1 16.4 1985 22.2 16.3 1986 22.1 16.1 1987 21.9 15.8 1988 22.0 15.5 1989 22.0 15.4 1990 22.0 15.4 1991 22.2 15.7 1992 22.2 15.9 1993 22.4 16.2 1994 22.7 16.4