Tories shit all over the comprehensive system with a return to the 1950s and a nationwide 11+

[noblegiraffe]

That nice comp down the road that you had your eye on for your kid currently in primary?

BAM, now it's got an entrance exam and your kid is going to be bussed out to a secondary modern. We're staring down the barrel of a return to the two tier system across England.

Word on the street is that Theresa May, because she is a total fucking thoughtless idiot who doesn't have a clue about education and couldn't be arsed to read the Green Paper consultation responses from people who do, has kept in the imminent White Paper on grammar schools the option for current comprehensives to convert to grammar schools.

Heads will be preparing their applications to convert as we speak, because no school wants to miss the boat and become the secondary modern of the area.

Everyone with kids in primary should be very worried about this. Even if you think your kid should have a good shot at getting into the grammar, the test is unreliable.

www.tes.com/news/school-news/breaking-views/government-set-allow-existing-schools-convert-grammar-status-white

GreenGinger2 loads get their kids into the preferred alternative comp and pay for the bus.

Doesn't this contradict the claim that people can't get their DCs into a good comp. because they can't afford to buy a house in the catchment?

If money can be found to bus DCs to Grammar Schools, why can money be found to bus DCs to their preferred comps. Build more comps. and more DCs will get to choose a good school. Build more Grammar schools and only the 10% that pass the test will be able to choose a good school. You can actually see this happening on your own door step yet you think more Grammar Schools is what is needed?

“I think the mistake is to assume the intake of a high performing comp is anything like a grammar so the change wouldn't make much difference. It will make a huge difference.”

Exactly noblegiraffe. DD’s school is a high performing comprehensive, but it is in a rural area with over 30 feeder schools. Some of the children who live in the back of beyond don’t have another secondary school within a reasonable distance. When we were looking at secondary schools I only put one school on the application form.

Wetoopere This ^^

Because Mum preferred comps have highly over subscribed catchment areas,hence house inflation in the catchment of the best. Bring able to afford a bus is neither here nor there if you don't get a place. You need property in that catchment or as near as possible. Those further away in cheaper housing lose out again when population numbers drop.

There will always be preferred comps. Some towns have 3 but 1 has parents fighting to get their DC in.

A lottery system is the only fair solution.

A lottery system won't reduce the price of the half million house comps (that apparently are abundant) to the point where someone who can only afford £150k can live there. I couldn't afford to live in central London regardless of how the schools select their pupils. It's not just the schools that decide house prices.

And the DfE report rather weirdly chose attainment to decide where the best comps were when doing their house price investigation, ignoring their own progress 8 measure. I saw this described as policy-based evidence

You have missed out Altrincham Boys Grammar !

Whatever you say about progress '8' the deciding figure is % of GCSEs inc Engl/Maths at A* - C

When Lincoln were beaten 5-0 by Arsenal in the FA Cup by your reasoning Lincoln who had no MultI Million Pound players won because they had achieved better than arsenal !

Invented 'Bollocks' that buys in to giving awards for turning up. In the real world no employer is going to give a job to a person with no C GCSE grades.

"i am going to give your the job over the Grammar School boy/girl because your progress 8 is better" !

Secondly for anyone to say Stretford or Partington or parts of Sale are not deprived is beyond belief !

you also missed my 'Nephews' grammar school out as well !

'you also missed my 'Nephews' grammar school out as well !'

St Ambrose?
4% fsm National Average 13.9%

"i am going to give your the job over the Grammar School boy/girl because your progress 8 is better" !

Will employers really care whether a candidate has been to a Grammar school or a Secondary Modern if that person is qualified for the role?

National average for FSM is 29.3% over the last 6 years !

Is it? I took the figure from the Manchester Evening News website.

Rather than shitting on the comprehensive school system, I think they are attempting to wipe away some of the shit. What's so wrong with differentiated learning. I get the feeling that most posters want the more able to stay in comprehensives as their role is really to drive up the standards of the others - at the expense of their own.

The point is the only thing matters outside a group of 'Amateur Social Scientists' on the forum trying to use (DUE) (Description Understanding and Enactment) is how many GCSEs A levels or Degree's a person has got !

Nobody is intrested that a school has enabled a pupil to achieve an E grade progressing through 2 full predicted grade levels !

Mine are from the 'Official' DFE Performance Tables 2016...

What exactly do you think happens to these pupils with E grades that you clearly don't give a shit about? Their chance to successfully move on to a college course or employment is much better with an E grade than an F.

flyingwithwings you also missed my 'Nephews' grammar school out as well

Altrincham Grammar school for Girls - 5
Altrincham Grammar School for Boys - 7
Sale Grammar School - 9
Stretford Grammar School - 25
Urmston Grammar Academy - 6
Loreto Grammar School - 4
Saint Ambrose College - 8

Whatever you say about progress '8' the deciding figure is % of GCSEs inc Engl/Maths at A - C*

Actually, A - C doesn't tell you very much at all. It could mean that 100% got a C in maths or it could mean that 100% got an A in maths. This is very relevant if a DC is looking to do A levels etc.

For example, If you look at the Average A Level results at those Grammar Schools (National average is C+ and the area average is a B-):

Altrincham Grammar school for Girls - A-
Altrincham Grammar School for Boys - B
Sale Grammar School - B-
Stretford Grammar School - C+
Urmston Grammar Academy - C+
Loreto Grammar School - B-
Saint Ambrose College - B-

Where can I see average A Level results by school?

bigmack click on the 16-18 tab on the DfE performance tables:

www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/find-a-school-in-england

Those DfE performance tables also give the percentage of pupils achieving AAB or higher in at least 2 facilitating subjects at A-level.

Trafford - 28.5%
National Average - 13.9% (or 17% All Schools)
Hampshire - 13.8%
Surrey - 14.4%
Kent - 16.7%

Loreto Grammar is actually a full B grade average not B- at A level ! (important for my Niece)...

Clavinova Those DfE performance tables also give the percentage of pupils achieving AAB or higher in at least 2 facilitating subjects at A-level

Sorry that was the point I was trying to make. A - C is no better than using the average. It doesn't tell you how many are getting A vs how many are getting an E.

I should also add that the A Level results don't necessarily reflect the progress of the 11 plus intake as there is a fair amount of movement after GCSEs.

Clavinova. So Trafford's performance at the highest level is extremely good !. By the way Niece got A* AA which is so down to the school.

So considering that DD1 yr12 is hoping to emulate her cousin at her grammar school. Why would i want my DDs ,not to get a similar education to my Niece and Nephews

flyingwithwings how relevant that B is to your niece will be dependent on the subjects they are looking to study:

www.loretogrammar.co.uk/213/examination-results-statistics

MumTryingHerBest - thankyou!

The only relevance was to point what a good school it was not for Niece's future who is a 1st year at a RG...

flyingwithwings - Clavinova. So Trafford's performance at the highest level is extremely good

I think that depends on what you are comparing to. For example:

Mossbourne Community Academy - 102 disadvantaged DCs - AAB 33.9%

Loreto - 4 disadvantaged DCs - AAB 24.6% (is 1/4 AAB good for a Grammar School?)

I've been teaching for 20 years and am acknowledged as V G at what I do. I still love the job despite all the crap that comes with it these days. However the day a grammar opens in the city nearest to my semi rural school is the day I quit. I want to teach in a comprehensive, not a secondary modern.