Peter Ewart gave us a talk on Victorian and Edwardian Schooldays.
He showed us lots of photos of children in school and of the buildings and also showed some examples of the logbooks kept by the headmaster detailing what was happening in school. These including comments about the weather, local fairs and activities such as hop picking which would affect attendance as some of the children would be working to help their parents earn money.
Peter showed one example of an entry detailing how a boy had been punished for failing to do his work and had received 2 cuts (hit with a cane). Peter told us of the 1870 act of parliament which was brought in to give compulsory education to children between the ages of 5 and 13.
In 1911 schools were sent the 1911 census form so that teachers could show the pupils how to fill it out. Then the child could help their parents, especially those who could not read or write, fill it out incorrectly. So maybe your ancestor’s census form is actually filled out by the child, not the parent!