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58104

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2014
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Primary Education: Admissions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessments he has made of the successes and failures of the differing primary school starting age in other countries such as Finland and Norway.
	tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
	tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
	uin	198993
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/06/2014 answer text <p>Formal school starting ages vary across OECD member states. However it is useful to compare the state provision of education for young children prior to the start of compulsory education as the majority of children in OECD countries have entered the education system at a young age - participation rates in formal childcare and pre-school are broadly similar across Finland, Norway and the United Kingdom.</p><p> </p><p>Research indicates that most countries have published curricula governing the provision of early years education from the ages four to six years which are consistent in their use of learning objectives and expected outcomes. The Department has commissioned the OECD to carry out an international review of pedagogy and practice in the early years to investigate this issue further. We anticipate a report in autumn 2014.</p><p> </p><p>Research has demonstrated that all-round development is enhanced for those children attending nursery compared to those who don't before starting school. This suggests that attending a formal learning environment from an earlier age is typically beneficial. Furthermore duration in nursery matters, with every month of nursery experience after age two years linked to better intellectual development and improved independence, concentration and sociability at age five with a continued effect at Key Stage 1.</p><p> </p><p>High quality early years education will help close the attainment gap that already exists by the beginning of primary school between disadvantaged children and their peers. Evidence is clear that children's learning and development in their early years is crucial to later attainment. The Effective Provision of Pre-School Education Project found that high quality early years education is a strong predictor of achievement in English and mathematics later on in school.</p><p> </p><p>We cannot provide the information requested on representations on this topic. The Department receives a huge volume of mail and representations on education and children's issues. There would be a disproportionate cost to providing a response in this case.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Norfolk answering member printed Elizabeth Truss grouped question UIN 198713 198715 question first answered 19/06/2014 16:37:47 answering member 4097 label Biography information for Elizabeth Truss
	tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman

58106

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2014
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Primary Education: Admissions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what representations he has received from (a) researchers, (b) academies, (c) pressure groups, (d) parents and (e) people working in education on the appropriate age for children to enter primary education.
	tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
	tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
	uin	198713
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/06/2014 answer text <p>Formal school starting ages vary across OECD member states. However it is useful to compare the state provision of education for young children prior to the start of compulsory education as the majority of children in OECD countries have entered the education system at a young age - participation rates in formal childcare and pre-school are broadly similar across Finland, Norway and the United Kingdom.</p><p> </p><p>Research indicates that most countries have published curricula governing the provision of early years education from the ages four to six years which are consistent in their use of learning objectives and expected outcomes. The Department has commissioned the OECD to carry out an international review of pedagogy and practice in the early years to investigate this issue further. We anticipate a report in autumn 2014.</p><p> </p><p>Research has demonstrated that all-round development is enhanced for those children attending nursery compared to those who don't before starting school. This suggests that attending a formal learning environment from an earlier age is typically beneficial. Furthermore duration in nursery matters, with every month of nursery experience after age two years linked to better intellectual development and improved independence, concentration and sociability at age five with a continued effect at Key Stage 1.</p><p> </p><p>High quality early years education will help close the attainment gap that already exists by the beginning of primary school between disadvantaged children and their peers. Evidence is clear that children's learning and development in their early years is crucial to later attainment. The Effective Provision of Pre-School Education Project found that high quality early years education is a strong predictor of achievement in English and mathematics later on in school.</p><p> </p><p>We cannot provide the information requested on representations on this topic. The Department receives a huge volume of mail and representations on education and children's issues. There would be a disproportionate cost to providing a response in this case.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Norfolk answering member printed Elizabeth Truss grouped question UIN 198715 198993 question first answered 19/06/2014 16:37:47 answering member 4097 label Biography information for Elizabeth Truss
	tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman

58107

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2014
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Primary Education: Admissions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of primary school starting age on (a) intellectual development, (b) social mobility and (c) results in (i) GCSE and (ii) A-level examinations.
	tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
	tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
	uin	198715
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/06/2014 answer text <p>Formal school starting ages vary across OECD member states. However it is useful to compare the state provision of education for young children prior to the start of compulsory education as the majority of children in OECD countries have entered the education system at a young age - participation rates in formal childcare and pre-school are broadly similar across Finland, Norway and the United Kingdom.</p><p> </p><p>Research indicates that most countries have published curricula governing the provision of early years education from the ages four to six years which are consistent in their use of learning objectives and expected outcomes. The Department has commissioned the OECD to carry out an international review of pedagogy and practice in the early years to investigate this issue further. We anticipate a report in autumn 2014.</p><p> </p><p>Research has demonstrated that all-round development is enhanced for those children attending nursery compared to those who don't before starting school. This suggests that attending a formal learning environment from an earlier age is typically beneficial. Furthermore duration in nursery matters, with every month of nursery experience after age two years linked to better intellectual development and improved independence, concentration and sociability at age five with a continued effect at Key Stage 1.</p><p> </p><p>High quality early years education will help close the attainment gap that already exists by the beginning of primary school between disadvantaged children and their peers. Evidence is clear that children's learning and development in their early years is crucial to later attainment. The Effective Provision of Pre-School Education Project found that high quality early years education is a strong predictor of achievement in English and mathematics later on in school.</p><p> </p><p>We cannot provide the information requested on representations on this topic. The Department receives a huge volume of mail and representations on education and children's issues. There would be a disproportionate cost to providing a response in this case.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Norfolk answering member printed Elizabeth Truss grouped question UIN 198713 198993 question first answered 19/06/2014 16:37:47 answering member 4097 label Biography information for Elizabeth Truss
	tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman

61666

	registered interest
	date	12/06/2014
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Primary Education: Admissions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of the current starting age for children entering primary education on the wellbeing and attainment of those born in summer months.
	tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
	tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
	uin	200501
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/06/2014 answer text <p>The Department for Education has not made an assessment of the effect of the current starting age for children entering primary education on the wellbeing and attainment of those born in the summer months.</p><p>However, research[1] carried out by the Department has demonstrated that the age at which tests are taken is the dominant reason for month of birth gaps in educational attainment, and not the age at which children start school; it is simply the fact of being younger when tested that accounts for most of the differences observed. The research reported no evidence of a causal relationship between school entry age and attainment.</p><p>Parents of summer born children who think their child is not ready to start school can request that their child is admitted outside of their normal age group and be admitted to reception year in the September following their fifth birthday. The school's admission authority is responsible for making the decision which must be based on the individual circumstance of each case.</p><p>[1]<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/182664/DFE-RR017.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/182664/DFE-RR017.pdf</a></p> answering member constituency South West Norfolk answering member printed Elizabeth Truss question first answered 18/06/2014 16:32:29 answering member 4097 label Biography information for Elizabeth Truss
	tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman