Changed GCSE system shows scores slipping
AN education chief has warned that a Government overhaul of GCSEs are graded means that Halton schools’ GCSEs results for 2017 cannot be compared to previous years.
According to the Office For National Statistics (ONS) data published last week, student grades for a haul of key national measures deteriorated in 2017.
Cllr Tom McInerney (children, young people and families) urged against snap judgement and said he is ‘really proud’ of how pupils had adapted to the changes to GCSE courses, stressing that ‘the exams are now harder than they have ever been in the past’.
Despite the Labour councillor’s upbeat appraisal, the ONS figures might still well make worrying reading overall for education bosses as the borough’s secondaries struggled to improve when measured against Government standards.
Notable falls in performance included a sudden drop in the average Attainment 8 score, which collates results in eight core subjects and which slipped from 49.3 in 201516 down to 44.9 in 201617, having been 46.8 in 2014-15.
The number of pupils achieving a strong English and maths grade between 9-5, roughly equivalent to A* to C, was also way below of the averages for England and the North West, with Halton scoring 30.5, far behind the 40.3 score achieved across the North West and the 42.9 rating for state schools in England.
Average scores in English and maths were each below average.
According to one of the ONS data sets, the average score in the non-GCSE element of their Key Stage 4 exams was higher for Halton than the average, perhaps suggesting an emphasis on vocational courses compared to other areas.
The average Progress 8 scores, which measure how much students have improved against their starting point, for English and maths were well below average in Halton but better than average in the open, non-core subject slots.
Half of the eight schools assessed were judged to be failing to meet the basic Progress 8 standard: Sts Peter And Paul Catholic College (-0.52), St Chad’s Catholic And Church Of England High (-0.69), Sandymoor (-1.11) and The Grange (-1.23).
At the other end of the table leading the pack was Ormiston Chadwick Academy, which scored +0.83 and was classed as ‘well above average’, followed by Wade Deacon, above average, on +0.19, then Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy, average, +0.18 and then The Heath on +0.04, also average.
Wade Deacon scored the best results overall when not measured against progress.
Cllr McInerney, said: “I would like to specifically thank all the hardworking staff, parents and families who have supported the students over the years.
“Most schools achieved at or near the national average for Attainment 8, a combination of eight approved GCSE courses.
“In the core subjects of English and maths, whilst we had some very good results we would have hoped that even more students would have achieved grade C – a four or five in the new system – or above in these subjects. ●
“Due to the changes in grading the assessments, it is not possible to compare results to previous year’s performance.
He added: “Working with our schools and academies we remain committed to education being a priority for the borough and to continue to improve our results so that the young people are well equipped to pursue their learning and work ambitions.”