Parent power 2023

[ChiefButler]

I'm looking for times secondary school league tables as we are looking to move house. Would like to read on paper rather than digital. If memory serves it is December - anyone knows if it has already been published or when?

If instead of looking at A-B grades they just looked at A grades only, then that would create greater difference between schools at different rankings (I looked at this for a dozen schools, the gaps are wider than the Sunday Times rankings).

And averaging three years of data would absolutely dampen the volatility of rankings. Each year just a third of a school's score would change, not 100%.

A-star to B and A-star is what was intended to be typed. "*"

FHSS failed their ISI compliance inspection this time last year. So to go from that to school of the year is … erm … interesting 🤔

At the very least it suggests ISI and the Times are looking for different things.

Rankings are a joke. Look at Columbia University. Cheated on their data disclosure, dropped from 2 to 18.

@futomaki I think you are missing my point.

Between school 15 and 50 on the list looking just at A*/A for GCSEs there is a 5 percentage point difference (95% to 90%). Given the differences between cohorts from a statistical perspective that's not a meaningful basis on which to differentiate schools' academic performance. This is literally the performance of a handful of students which is most likely down to cohort differences.

For A-levels again 20 schools on the list are separated by a 5 percentage point difference in A*/A level ranking among the top 50.

For all of the top 50 schools, the performance differences and rankings don't tell you anything meaningful about how your child will like perform. If your child is academic enough to get into any of these schools, statistically they'll almost certainly get identical academic results at any of them. The main differences in performance is the ability range of each cohort at intake (between schools and between years).

Focusing on such minute differences in performance creates the wrong incentives for educators that are harmful for children. For schools of this calibre, parents should be ranking them based on qualitative criteria that are often unique to their family like:

1. Ethos and culture including that of the parent body
2. Pastoral care / approach to mental health
3. Cocurricular offering matching your child's interest and needs
4. Convenience / commute
5. Careers advice / university coaching programmes
6. Learning support etc

These league tables are very crude. There are better sources of information on the individual value add each school adds relative to the ability of its intake that isn't captured in these rankings.

Correct. Now just look at "A*" grades only.

@futomaki now I know you've missed my point entirely

sorry, i'm confused. which point do you mean? thanx

@TawnyPippit FHSS met all ISI compliance in the most recent report (2022). They did not meet guidance on keeping up with statutory safeguarding reporting in 2021, and it was upgraded at the time of the report. In all other aspects they were complaint in 2021.
My daughter is at FHSS Sixth Form. Their outstanding A Level results last year no doubt contribute to their rise in the league tables. And as for your thinking @LondonMum20222, the 600 plus girls that arrived for Y7 entry tours and interviews this past year disproves your idea it's a last ditch option. The fact it is open to a wider academic entry yet still achieves such outstanding results rather proves it's worth? My daughter says it is not a pressured environment, yet the teachers and the girls aim high. OP she would recommend it. My daughter travels in from Zone 3, so not all girls are local.

Yes, the “most recent inspection” was a specific response to failing the last one. So good to know they passed that. Failing on “statutory safeguarding” issues is sort of a big deal. But, hey, the A level results are good.

The devil is in the details - and we don't know what they are (or do you)? In the 2021 report it seemed to suggest they weren't up on the very latest training in terms of prompt reporting to the LADO but says this was addressed. This also doesn't mean they failed in any given case. But I don't know. The previous full inspection in 2017 they were rated 'excellent' in educational and personal development.

I don’t know the specific details of the FHSS inspection, although the reports are fairly detailed. I do understand the ISI inspection regime and have seen it up (very) close - they are fairly invasive, IME. I have also have had children in schools under it. I’m surprised when parents shrug and go “oh well” when their children’s school fails, especially re safeguarding issues (not saying you are, BTW). Reports from 2017 aren’t really relevant for 2022.

No axe to grind at all re that school. But as a parent I would be more focussed on the ISI report failure than the Times award.

If you have online access to the Times you can sort the schools by A level A star only, or A star A, or just focus on GCSEs (9/8/7). They have GCSE 9/8 in the details for each school, but annoyingly not one the summary table, as that would be interesting too.

The top 3 (SPGS, SPS and KCS) remain in the top 5 on all criteria except GCSE, and in the top 6 (KCS) at GCSE. I really don’t think, as suggested, that the sole reason Kings do so well is the inclusion of girls in 6th Form.

I also had a look at the top 10 in 2019; 6 of the 10 are still there - so at the very top there is not actually much movement year to year.

I have very good experience of one of the top 10 schools, and while there is some movement after GCSEs, it’s almost entirely personal choice by the pupils, and not a weeding out by the school.

Whichever criterion you use, there is some bunching - there are 8 schools whose A star percentage is between 59.1 and 63.1, for example. So there is a bit of randomness to the exact order, and anyone using the tables sensibly would know that.

One interesting observation: Percentage A stars are way up. SPGS had 52% in 2019 and was one of only 3 schools with a percentage greater than 50. This year SPGS has 75% (!) A star, and 29 schools had a percentage above 50. Suggests the marks were rather closer to the teacher assessed grades than the pre-Covid levels.

The other point of interest is the fall in rankings of the top boarding schools - not just Eton, but Wycombe Abbey and Winchester too. Perhaps more an indication of societal change and attitudes towards boarding than anything else?

Ahem. This year's national A Level results won't actually be published until Feb 2023, so I don't know what the Times are basing their stats on. 🧐
educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2022/06/22/were-changing-the-way-we-present-school-and-college-results-data-this-year-what-you-need-to-know-about-performance-tables/

We are very keen on fhss for year 7, but the new league tables have me slightly worried that there is weeding out at the top. Have you heard or seen this? Also, how did school respond to the safeguarding issues?

I still find it astounding that Epsom College failed an ISI compliance report on safeguarding and bullying issues in December 2021 and was then named Independent School of the year by the Independent Schools awards in October 2022 plus winning the Student Welfare Award!

@AnonForThisPost there is bunching at the top. However, this tells you more about the cohort than about the teaching or how well your child is likely to do at the school while equally creating a perverse incentive to force out rather than support children who are struggling for any variety of reasons.

Looking at league tables as a primary tool to select schools is very flawed and even the schools themselves recognise this and have railed against it but are stuck in the system.

@LondonGirl83 I agree league tables are only part of the story, and my post was not intended to suggest otherwise. And of course it is essential that you pick the school that suits the child you have. But if you do have very bright DC and academics are important to you and them, then it is a useful piece of information.

Also, as I said before, I have not seen weaker DC being forced out of the top 10 school I know well. On the contrary, they are given a lot of support to get the grades the school aspires to for all pupils.

Finally, it is really not just about the cohort. While of course selection is a very big factor, it is not the only one. There are definitely some schools that punch above their weight - and indeed some below - when you compare how selective they are able to be to their league table positions.

I am surprised that Winchester College is nowhere near the top 30 and even Eton is ranked higher….

@mondaytosunday I completely understand that if your DD is at FHSS, you don't want to be reading negative things about it online, and obviously this year's results are very impressive. But to respond to two of your points: there's very little correlation in London between numbers of people going on tours of a school and a school's desirability. Every parent I know is visiting c.10-15 schools, just out of curiosity in many cases, but only intending to apply to 4-5. It's simply part of due diligence when you're making such a big decision. Ditto, number of applicants is no real litmus test either: there's plenty of chat on here this year about the fact that applications across the boards have skyrocketed, with people applying to an increasing number of schools. The more interesting statistic is a school's offer:acceptance ratio; at the top schools, hardly anyone turns down offers, whereas other schools often offer 2:1, and keep a long waitlist, knowing that a high proportion of their offers will be turned down.

Yes, it's impressive that FHSS have shot up the A Level rankings this year, but I'd read very little into that until there are at least three or four more years to judge that on. A school's consistency is more important than one rogue year, good or bad.

I very much agree with @LondonGirl83 that the culture of a school is significantly more important than the raw results (as I've said on many other threads on here, a bright child will get the same results at any of these schools. It's purely a question of where they'll be happiest). FHSS doesn't, unfortunately, have a great reputation culturally within the London girls' private school scene, and it is the case that at my DD's prep, it is the back-up school that people go to rather reluctantly, if all else fails.

I’d take the private school stats with a massive pinch of salt given what happened with TAGs in many during the Covid years

amp.theguardian.com/education/2022/feb/06/labour-seeks-inquiry-into-huge-jump-in-top-grade-a-levels-at-private-schools

Good points. Take a look at the SPGS A-level Physics results this year, off-the-charts.

Wasn't it the case that A Levels were still marked somewhat leniently last year (given all the disruption those pupils had faced over the previous two years) and that things won't shake down reliably in terms of results for another year or two? The jump in the number of schools getting over 50% A* (from 3 to 29, quoted above) must be indicative of that?

@LondonMum20222 officially they were supposed to be aiming for half way between 2019 results and 2021 TAGs, with 2023 back to pre-TAG levels. But for the top schools the results do look better than that.

The impression within education is that the summer of 22 A level results were more generous than the exam boards had indicated they would be, ie nearer to 2021 rather than between 2019 and 2021.