In a 2014 BBC interview available here , John Harrie from "Visible Learning " made some remarquable statements on what works in schools and what doesn't. This interview reinforces things you might expect, such as the importance of teachers, but also offers some surprises that might have parents and teachers questioning their priorities such as
John Hattie about class size
“the impact of class size is tiny. In a league table of effects it’s about on hundred and fifth lace out of a hundred and thirty. And why is it so small, so small is because teachers don’t change how they teach when they go from class of thirty to fifteen !”
John Hattie about homework
“Homework in primary school has an effect of around zero. In high school it’s larger. (…) ..... Five to ten minutes has the same effect of one hour to two hours. The worst thing you can do with homework is give kids projects. The best thing you can do is to reinforce something you’ve already learnt.”
John Hattie about streaming
“It doesn’t make a difference, No difference at all. Teachers think it’s easier for them and it may be but in terms of the effects of students, no. Now you’ve got to remember that a lot of students gain a tremendous amount of their learning from their other students in the class and variability is the way that you get more of that kind of learning from other students.”
