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Original poster

setting children in secondary school - fiddling the numbers to achieve a gender balance...

30 replies

harpsichordcarrier · 30/06/2010 20:34

This week I have been listening to, and participating at the margins, in setting discussions - year 7 into 8, 8 into 9 and 9 into GCSE.
In almost every case, children have been moved around the groups to achieve a gender "balance" because, in practice, the top sets would be heavily dominated by girls and the bottom sets by boys.
So boys with lower achievement levels/potential are put into top sets than more able girls, and relatively able girls are put into bottom sets.

This seems to be accepted practice but I am very about it. Why shouldn't a top set be mostly/mainly girls? Why should that matter?
opinions please

OP posts:
roisin · 30/06/2010 21:02

It sounds like your school needs a major "raising boys achievement" drive.

At our school sets are fairly 'pure', though there is some juggling goes on because of timetable restrictions and/or behaviour.

But in most year groups our top sets tend to be fairly balanced anyway for gender.

At ds1's school they don't set, but they do have a single 'high aptitude' group for most subjects. Again, this is very much a mixed group. And the boys I know that are in it are certainly not there for their gender and can give the girls a serious run for their money.

busymummy3 · 30/06/2010 20:54

I have never really thought about this before but am now even more glad I sent DD to an all girls school. She is a high achiever and is in top set for everything she would absolutely have hated being one of a few girls with a lot of boys.

Original poster
harpsichordcarrier · 30/06/2010 20:39

Interesting. I was VERY about the notion of "balance" and why it is relevant in these circumstances.

OP posts:
RattusNorvegicus · 30/06/2010 20:36

Ours are set in Y7. My daughter's form has 24 girls and 6 boys. No problems.

janeite · 30/06/2010 20:35

We don't look at genders when setting unless it would mean just one boy or one girl being in a group. My top group Yr 10 set has far more boys than girls in it.

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