A Critical Examination of the Beliefs about Learning a Foreign Language at Primary School

was a waste of time. The findings to Question Four raise a number of important
issues which will be discussed further later in the thesis.

Question Five: What organizational and teaching problems are posed by the
introduction of French teaching in the primary school?

Organisational problems were reported as numerous both at primary and
secondary school level. The structure of the school day was a major problem in
the primary schools. An integrated day could often not be maintained as class
teachers would also teach French to other classes or the flexibility of the
timetable had been constrained to accommodate visiting foreign language
specialists. Burstall et al. reported that the idea of replacing the 'fluid' timetable
with a 'fixed' timetable was not welcomed by many teachers who objected to the
'indirect specialisation' caused by the introduction of French. Continuity
between primary and secondary school was one of the major concerns.
Originally planned separate classes at secondary school for those children who
had started French at primary school were frequently not feasible due to the
small number of pupils involved. One can only speculate that the introduction of
the comprehensive school system and the demand for mixed-ability teaching in
the mid-1960s might have made the idea of separate classes rather 'unpopular*.
It will later be seen that 'practical conditions' and 'organisational problems' still
form the major focus of current debates surrounding an early start while some
of the other crucial findings, for example the finding that the later starters quickly
caught up with the early starters, receive scant or no attention.

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