What does APS (average point score) mean in a high school results table?

[lljkk]

Crikey, I would have thought it'd be easy to find, but I'm not having any luck. Something like the average score of the top 6 test results for each student taking GCSE... or is it something to do with KS3 tests? Please help?!

Pupils are given a certain number of points for each A, B, C etc & the APS is the average per pupil

This page explains more.

(Just got called to the phone halfway through this post, so someone else may have answered by now)

Any use here

Thanks, so... if you have 2 schools, one has 42% GCSE pass rate (so many GCSEs at grade whatever and above), and the other has 65% GCSE pass rate... but they have almost the same APS, what does that mean? Does it mean that the 65% school has more consistent results, whereas the 42% school has a bigger range of outcomes, maybe? Why should GCSE pass rate be so different, but APS be so clsoe to the same for the 2 schools?

The % quoted now are usually 5 passes included maths and english. DS school get 64% 5 a-c passes included maths and english but 76% 5 passes a-c not necessarily encluded maths and english.

It could be that the school with the lower results may be more successful at a wider range of subjects, whereas the school with 65% are concentrating more on getting everyone through maths and english IYSWIM

It sounds like the 65% school may be concentrating on getting the maximum number of kids through GCSE, without bothering too much how they do it (i.e. if you scrape a C, that will do). Our school used to get results that looked good on paper because they entered everyone for a B.Tec that was (allegedly) worth 4 GCSE. All you had to do was get any other random GCSE and, bingo, the school had its magic '5 GCSE'.
Partly in response to these sort of practices there are now two GCSE tables: 1. how many get '5 GCSE' and 2. how many get '5 GCSE inc Maths & English'.

Quattrocenro, on another thread, linked to an interesting table which may answer how much the 65% school pushes beyond the bare minimum.

Really intresting, not sure what to conclude. The 65% school has a maths specialty, the 43% school has arts spec'ty. Alas, None of local high schools are in that link, purits.

No, I looked after I posted and I couldn't see DD's old school either. Her fab new school is on it though.
It's a voluntary disclosure thing so schools probably only send in their stats if they have something to be proud of.

I'm not sure that the spciality status means a lot, apart from extra money for the school.[cynical]
What happans at sixth form at your schools: do people desert in droves or flock to them?

TryBBC education

Also look on the schools own website you might get more information.

I would also look at the CVA figure. It should be a 1000 or above.

The 65% school is on the list Christy linked to, for most improved schools.

But CVA (Christy's 2nd post) is above 1000 for the 43% school, and below 1000 for the 65% school. No 6th form at any of the local(ish) HSchools, there is one 6th form college meant to serve them all. The 43% school is the closest, fairly convenient, but has iffy (at best) rep.

Pretty impossible to get into the 65% school, actually, over-subscribed as the best of the local(ish) state secondaries, so not sure why I'm mulling. Except that DS most likes maths/science, and the 65% school is the only local(ish) HSchool to specialise in those subjects.

I've been trawling through web sites looking for the answer to this. It's confusing because the APS used in league tables etc is different. The points used here for GCSEs are:- A*=58, A=52, B=46, C=40, D=34, E=28, F=22 & G=16.
Hope this helps!