Nursery World - Children make major gains in nurture groups (1)

Young children with behavioural and emotional problems gain significantly from being in nurture groups, a study in Glasgow primary schools has found. Nurture groups are run by a teacher and classroom assistant working with six to eight children who have problems often associated with deprived or difficult backgrounds.

Nurture groups are run by a teacher and classroom assistant working with six to eight children who have problems often associated with deprived or difficult backgrounds.

The study concluded that nurture groups help children to develop good social and emotional skills and higher levels of academic achievement.

Researchers assessed 179 children aged between five and seven years old (P1 and P2) in 32 schools across the city.

Children were assessed using scales including how they respond to others, their self-image, self-esteem, emotional maturity and basic attainment levels.

Children in nurture groups made significant improvements in every scale.

They overtook children in the control group in basic educational attainment despite starting off with lower scores than these children.

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