GCSE performance tables slammed by East Lancashire teaching unions (From Lancashire Telegraph)
When news happens, text LT and your photos and videos to 80360. Or contact us by email or phone.
GCSE performance tables slammed by East Lancashire teaching unions
9:52am Friday 27th January 2012 in Education
THE school league tables system has been slammed by teaching unions in East Lancashire.
Bosses at the National Union of Teachers said that the system where schools are ranked by the number of A* to C GCSE grades pupils gain forces a focus on ‘borderline C grade’ youngsters.
And the unions said that was to the detriment of the very gifted or very low achieving pupils.
Simon Jones from the NUT, said: “League tables do not give a genuine reflection of the achievements of head teachers, teachers or pupils.
“The NUT has long highlighted the problem of some schools focusing on the results of borderline C-grade children.
“Although the Government claims the new information about GCSE results will measure progress for children from the highest to the lowest attaining, the league table system is still flawed and will still create a situation in which schools are concentrating on results rather than on providing the broad and balanced education to which every child is entitled.”
Chris Keates, general secretary of the NASUWT, said: “Predictably the publication of the tables has provided yet another opportunity for another round of teacher bashing by the Government.”
Adrian Prandle, education policy adviser at the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, ATL, said: “The secondary league tables highlight what we already know — that schools in deprived areas face tough challenges.
“These schools need to be given the flexibility to tailor the curriculum so that they can inspire those children who struggle to learn. They do not need politicians pushing a restrictive curriculum and making teaching to the test inevitable.”
Comments(2)
TONY WALES
says...
10:27am Fri 27 Jan 12
You are turning out people from schools who are "not suitable for business".
Yesterday's page, (in the Daily Mail) highlighted the fact that too many people are getting degrees in useless subjects such as media studies, and not the more difficult science subjects. The country needs engineers, people with mathematics, computer skills , and science subjects.
Look at Germany, the strongest country in the EU. Visit the Ruhr, see the German industry, the factories turning out BMW's and VW cars. Look at the industry, they don't have empty factories Look at the apprenticeship system in Germany, they don't turn out students with media study degrees. That's why they are the strongest country in the EU.
So you can moan every time a set of school performance figures come out. You can think you are doing a good job by having a high figure for your GCSE results, but are the subjects any good for this country? Will they help the country become stronger than Germany?
burner says...
10:23am Fri 27 Jan 12
.
. . .and why is this? . . . . because OFSTED ( and silly parents ) measure schools by the grades and little else. KS2 level 4s or above D, GCSE at all that matters to them. They ignore other good work done by a school.