Primary school's name was borrowed from French in 1802
The English phrase primary school is a calque of the French école primaire, first appearing in the London Times in April 1802. Whatever it is called, from elementary school in the United States to Grundschule in Germany, this first stage of compulsory education usually teaches children aged roughly 4 to 11.
International statisticians classify primary education as ISCED Level 1, a single phase meant to give pupils basic reading, writing and mathematics and a foundation for later learning. In most countries it is compulsory and free, though fee-paying independent schools exist. UNESCO and most Commonwealth nations favour the term primary school, while Americans usually say elementary or grade school, terms that can cover the first eight grades.
Histories differ by country. The Massachusetts Bay Colony promoted elementary schools as early as 1647, and the United States now has roughly 92,858 of them, 68,173 public and 24,685 private, usually spanning six grades for ages 5 to 11. Its Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 funded schooling and stressed equal access. In England and Wales, board schools arose under the Elementary Education Act 1870 and mostly became primary schools in the late 1940s after the compromise of the Education Act 1944. Japan had elementary schools by 1875, taking pupils from 6 to 12.
Naming year groups also varies. Canada follows the American model but says Grade 1 rather than First Grade, and because education there is provincial, Ontario kept a Grade 13 until phasing it out in 2003. Oversight ranges from informal review by staff and governors in Finland to state inspection by Ofsted in the United Kingdom, where church schools may deliver primary education, something strict secularism forbids in France.
Buildings follow careful formulas. British standards call for a 62 square metre classroom for 30 infants and 55 for juniors. In 2014 the UK government cut the space formula to 350 square metres plus 4.1 per pupil place, with finishes downgraded to hit a build cost of £1113 per square metre.
Source: Primary school
