As anybody read the total rubbish in the DAILY.... about Reading LA achieving 45.9% at AAB

[soul2000]

On page 10 of the Daily Lie, it claims that 45.9% A Level students in Reading LA achieved AAB . It also claims that in Trafford 34.5% of students achieved AAB. This is total nonsense Reading/Kendrick School achieved 49% of students , the best in Trafford was 29% at Altrincham Girls/Boys .

These statistics don't make any sense and since there are under 20 state schools in the country that get over 30% of students at AAB . Can somebody explain how these statistics make sense.

I agree that if there were more grammar places available then it wouldn't be a problem, and I also agree that a better future move for our education system might be to remover the lowest achieving students that display disruptive behaviour.

It's also worth pointing out that while the reading grammar schools do take children from outside reading, they are very close to the LA boundary, so it's not as if the majority of children are attending the school from a ridiculously huge distance away. There are lots of children there that are considered to come from outside Reading, but it takes them less than ten minutes in a car to get there from home.

I think the other issue with Reading is you get a fair number from out of catchment who are also going for Slough Consortium or Bucks, and some from Oxfordshire, doing the Reading Boys test so multiplying their odds, then if they score highly enough in Reading (in early Oct) and have that as preference, they move to catchment before year end...however I think new proposals are on the table for 2014 from Reading Boys to stipulate that you must be in catchment now before you take the 11+ test and it also sounds like the test will move to a less tutorable (supposedly) CEM test - both good moves IMO. But as the catchment area is very wide, I don't think it will make a substantial difference to number or quality of 11+ applicants but time will tell.

Just found out the boys blazer is £70-96!! How on earth is that equal access? School uniform prices should be heavily managed so it doesn't create segregation on this basis. I'm astonished they can charge that much.

by comparison, at prep schools you can easily spend about 800-1000 a year just on uniform/sports uniform...

second hand uniforms offered often run at the school do good trade for that reason

This isn't about the comparison between grammar and private for most normal people. This is a state school that we all pay for that is highly, some would say super, selective and does not serve the community that it is situated in. It should be held more accountable for who goes and how they get in.

I think the criteria is going to change from next year Mrs J - see my post above- that might allay some of the criticism.

No, I didn't read the article in question because I find it kind of stupid to read what I know to be crap AND then complain about how the article was talking crap.