School league tables
The best state schools have overtaken their fee-paying rivals for the first time in league tables of examination results published on Thursday.
Two city technology colleges with comprehensive intakes recorded the best scores in GCSE and vocational qualifications at 16, while two grammar schools topped the A Level league.
But the Independent Schools Council (ISC) accused the government of rendering the performance tables meaningless by taking into account hundreds of extra qualifications.
Government Response: Department for Education and Skills
Stephen Twigg, schools standard minister, said: "These figures show that the fastest improvement is being made in areas of significant deprivation and historically low achievement. Through our work in Excellence in Cities and London Challenge we are supporting the hard work of pupils and teachers in these areas.
"I am particularly pleased to see a significant rise again this year in the number of schools with at least 20 per cent achieving at least five good GCSEs. There are now only 71 schools below the 20 per cent floor target compared with 112 in 2003 and 361 in 1997.
"I welcome the extension of the value added measure this year to cover all schools between key stage two and age 15 providing parents with a fuller picture on the performance of their child's school.
"I am also pleased with the developments in vocational education with the inclusion this year in the tables of a range of additional vocational courses giving credit for the first time to those schools and pupils who have worked hard to achieve these important qualifications."
Party Response: Conservative
Tim Collins, shadow education secretary, said: "Giving vocational qualifications similar status to GCSEs in 'hard' subjects purely to satisfy Labour's ludicrous target culture does no-one any favours. It simply encourages an 'aim low' attitude to exams. This approach not only demotivates children studying physics, French and history but it also undermines teachers' efforts to get less-academically gifted pupils to study valuable skills-orientated courses designed to improve their career opportunities later on. This really does prove that when it comes to our children's education one size doesn't fit all.
"The next Conservative government will ensure that headteachers have the independence and resources to devise challenging classroom curricula for children of all ages and abilities."
Party Response: Liberal Democrat
Phil Willis, Liberal Democrat education spokesman, said: "The results that matter most are completely missing from these tables. The government is hiding the fact that two thirds of students still fail to gain the national standard in the core curriculum subjects. The percentage of students achieving A*-C in the three core subjects of maths, English and science has remained unchanged at a shocking 39 per cent over the past three years. The apparent increase in students gaining five A*-C is misleading as it is largely due to a handful of pupils taking a technical GNVQ that is recorded as being equivalent to four GCSE passes. It is high time we abandoned meaningless league tables and gave young people, employers and universities the information they need."
Dr Mary Bousted, ATL general secretary, said: "Secondary teachers have yet again produced the required outcomes, but they know this is at the expense of demoralised pupils who can pass tests but who resent the test load. ATL believes there is now an urgent need to reform 14-19 assessment, as recommended by Tomlinson.
"Those who thought the publication of value-added data would resolve the problems of league tables have been confounded again. The range of achievement measured is small and statistically insignificant. The pressure is on the government to admit that league tables inform prospective parents of the social origins of schools' intakes and little else."
Stakeholder Response: National Union of Teachers
Steve Sinnott, NUT general secretary, said: "Against the government's preferred means of judging school performance, academy status is not a resounding success story. With four of the 11 reporting academies coming in the bottom 200 schools, the message is that academies do not represent a magic solution.
"The reasons for a school's success or failure are complex. Simply renaming a school as an academy is not a panacea for the problems of any area. The impact on pupil performance of social and economic deprivation has to be tackled with proper resources and support and a stable, qualified staff, not by resorting to the private sector.
"The government should publish the evaluation of the academy programme which is in the hands of the DfES. The NUT wants to work with the government on the issue of disadvantage and on establishing a means of providing straight forward comprehensive information for parents and the public on the performance of schools. But that information must not be based on a narrow definition of achievement."
Stakeholder Response: Secondary Heads Association
Dr John Dunford, SHA general secretary, said: "Teachers and students are to be congratulated on a further steady improvement in examination results. There can be no reason to complain of falling standards, as some people always do on these occasions. Instead the results should be cause for celebration as secondary schools and colleges continue a year-on-year improvement of which the country should be proud.
"The tables of value added scores from age 11 to 16, published for the first time this year, show the real achievements of schools, particularly those serving disadvantaged areas where the attainments of children on entry to the school are very low.
"Although more difficult to interpret, the greater complexity of this year's tables is welcome in avoiding the simplistic approach of previous years and giving parents a broader view of the achievements of schools.
"It remains the case, however, that league tables are deeply flawed, creating perverse incentives for schools to change their examination entry policy – and even their curriculum – to improve their league table position.
"With the Tomlinson report, the government is developing a 14 to 19 qualifications structure in which league tables of the achievements of 16-year-olds will become an anachronism. They have no place in a system of intelligent accountability for schools."
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