Letter: Class size is a vexed question worldwide

Sir: League tables, whether national or international, say nothing and hide all. David Forrester of the Department for Education should consider this before he praises the 'high standards' and large classes of the Far East.

Japan, for example, has consistently led the maths and science results tables. The cost, however, is high. Students are only expected to absorb and regurgitate information, nothing more. Creativity and initiative are not encouraged. There is no assessed work and a student's entire future rests upon a few multiple-choice or one-answer-question exams.

A slow learner in a large class receives little or no attention. Teachers cannot afford to assist one out of a possible 40, leaving the unfortunate pupil to drift into delinquency. Bullies are endemic but often hidden by the mass of students. The strains of overwork and bullying can be too much: the only relief for many is suicide.

Are these the 'high standards' Mr Forrester aspires to? While Japanese educationalists are debating how to change their system for the future, our government appears happy for us to slip into the past.

Yours faithfully,

JEREMY BARRAUD

Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire

5 September