League tables are often important tools for parents when considering boarding
schools – but how useful and accurate are they as a means of establishing a school’s
worth?
League tables can be an important tool for overseas parents who might not necessarily have local knowledge, a source of useful word of mouth or the ability to travel here easily when making a decision about the institution that will be most suitable for their child or children.
What is the underlying data?
These tables are based on the annual results of the National Curriculum Key Stage 4 examinations (GCSES or equivalent, usually taken at 16) and Key Stage 5 examinations (A-levels or equivalent, usually taken at the age of 18). These are normally taken in June each year, and the official figures at school level are published several months later, usually by January of the following year. These are available here.
These school league tables are for England only as Wales and Northern Ireland abolished league tables in 2001, as did Scotland in 2003. Academic achievement data in the other three countries is available online but the way they are published does not always make it as easy to compare schools.
So what is on offer?
If you are concerned that you will have to wade through official raw data (or locate the relevant information for schools in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland if these areas are of interest), do not worry as quite a few publishers have got there first and compiled this data in a series of easily available rankings/league tables. These rankings have become among the most high-profile unofficial measures of school reputation in recent years. A number of UK newspapers and magazines, including The Financial Times, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Times and The Guardian, produce annual rankings of UK schools using this data.
These are both available as printed copies and are also accessible online, hosted on the parent websites of the newspapers. These tend also to be searchable and allow comparisons to be made between schools, showing how each school matches up with every other school, both state and independent, teaching those qualifications in England. Some newspapers like The Daily Telegraph also give separate rankings for independent schools.
The GCSE league tables typically give the official percentage of pupils achieving at least five GCSEs, including English and maths and the average point score per pupil. They might also look at the percentage of those achieving English Baccalaureate or other results. The A-level league tables typically use official results like the average point score per student, the average point score per subject, and the percentage of pupils getting the highest grades (usually A or A* or AAB).
There are slight variations on this. Ranking is then based on the data highlighted by each newspaper, which is then weighted slightly differently by them to generate their final tables. Remember that there will be a time delay between when these exams are sat and when the official results are available for use in tables like these – for instance, the official 2020 results are unlikely to be available before January 2021.
Online
This being a digital age and there being a strong market for this information, there are also a wide range of websites aiming to help parents by providing rankings and league tables of UK independent schools using the official government data as well. Some are commercial and others non-commercial. You will not have to look far online to find them.
Mention should be made of:
• The BBC – it has published league tables in its News section over the years.
• The Independent Schools Council (ISC) – this is a voluntary body representing a large proportion of UK independent schools. Every year it collects information about exam performance from member schools in the week following publication of results (this is normally in August for both GCSES and A-levels). These come out more quickly than the official figures as a result but are likely to be subject to revision.
• Compare school and college performance – this is a government website that, although it does not explicitly rank schools and only looks at schools in England, enables the user to select and compare schools with quite detailed information including exam results.
• Some of the more notable commercial websites pull together all the relevant data including exams results as part of a service to help parents find the right school. All have searchable databases and allow comparisons to be made between schools. They again weight official data slightly differently to come up with their rankings.
So what does all this mean?
The bottom line is that rankings are a commercial proposition in most cases, with the aim of selling newspapers, periodicals or books or driving traffic to their websites. Numerical rankings are a better way of achieving this than longer qualitative descriptions of each school, even though the latter might actually be more useful for parents. The decisions behind the weighting of the factors underpinning the scores given to each school are mostly based on the individual publishers’ value judgments as to what the ideal academic performance is. These may differ from what you consider to be important for your child. They are most certainly not an objective or precise yardstick as a result.
Each league table has to reduce a large amount of information down to a few factors underpinning the scores. This runs the risk of over-simplication and may not fairly reflect the complexity that is a school, its teachers and its pupil body.
Rankings at best are a useful rough guide to a school’s reputation and quality, but they should not be taken too seriously given the variety of sorting the results used in the various league tables and also the great variety of independent schools in the UK, which will differ greatly in terms of size, facilities, environment, pastoral support, activities, ethos, history and atmosphere. A school where one pupil flourishes might not necessarily be suitable for another. This is actually a sign of the sector’s strength: there will literally be something for everyone.
So it is best to treat these as a pointer rather than hard facts. Do not let them determine what you do; use them in combination with other sources of information that may better take into account what is important to you and your child.
The value ‘added’ bonus
One thing will become clear after looking at all this data: independent schools are usually among the better academic performers, with many appearing in the top end of most rankings. This position, however, has been eroded over the last few years with the rise of academies and free schools plus other recent reforms that together have shaken up the state sector. It is still early days but it appears the academic performance of the state sector has had a shot in the arm, with the best academies and free schools at least the equal of leading independent schools. The old private school edge is therefore no longer as much of a given in academic results. As a result many parents also look for something extra on top of the league tables. This is where the inherent ‘value added’ strengths of the independent sector in the UK come into play. Put simply, value added is the difference between the grades a pupil is predicted to gain on joining a school and the grades that they actually achieve at GCSE and A-level. When the actual performance exceeds the predicted one, that difference represents the improvement the pupil has made – the value that has been added during their time at the school.
Value-added data is useful as it shows which schools have made a difference to their pupils’ performance, as opposed to those that simply select the most academically gifted pupils for admission. It can be very difficult to add value to the most able cohort, so some highly selective schools will not score highly, despite doing a fine job.
The figures in the league tables are an attempt to measure the value added using a points score. The school’s value-added score is the average difference between the predicted and actual achievement. Most boarding school pupils shoot way ahead of the predictions – proof that the school has added value to their education.
UK Location
The most obvious strength of the UK independent sector is its location in a stable, prosperous and open country. They will also have an advantage over schools and satellite campuses in other countries in being located in the homeland of English; pupils will be immersed from the start in an environment where English is the native language. Many UK independent schools also have long and illustrious histories with famous alumni and deep roots in their local communities. Those attending will get a sense of being part of something special as a result, an intangible advantage over potential competitors outside the UK.
International outlook
Although located in the UK, independent schools are not insular. They have been welcoming pupils from all over the world for many decades. Indeed, most independent schools will have at least a few overseas studies in their pupil body (although this will vary, giving you a choice as to how international you want your child’s school to be). They have established strong links with many countries all over the world (indeed there has been a boom in numbers of overseas satellite campuses set up by UK independent schools over the last few years). This means that they will have experience of dealing with children from many different cultures and religions. Equally importantly, they will be experienced in giving English language support and tuition if this is necessary. You will be sure of a warm welcome and appropriate support for your child.
Quality of education and teaching
Leaving academic results to one side, the general quality of education in the independent sector is very high, which is assured by both the governments of the UK and the ISC (see earlier). Schools try to recruit the best-quality teachers and will employ the latest teaching techniques in small classes, ensuring personal attention when needed, something that is still comparatively rare outside this sector. The comparatively high academic achievements of many independent
schools are the result of this.
Curriculum
Because it does not have to follow the compulsory National Curriculum that state schools do in England (and the equivalents in the other three countries), the independent sector in the UK offers a wider range of qualifications and courses, although most work towards standard public examinations like GCSEs and A-levels, ensuring consistency and qualifications that are recognised. This allows flexibility in what is offered, for instance the International Baccalaureate is becoming ever more popular, as well as a wider range of subjects (often supported by good facilities). It should not be difficult to find a course appropriate for your child.
Activities
A ‘broad education’ is central to the independent sector ethos – children are encouraged to follow and develop their interests outside the classroom, be it music, drama or the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. Sport is taken particularly seriously at many schools, offering a wide range of activities backed up by excellent facilities. Financial support is even offered at some schools for talented sports people. Many UK sports stars got their start at independent school. The range of what children can do tends to be greater than in equivalent state sector schools. An independent education will help develop your child in more ways than one.
Facilities
The independent sector prides itself on the good quality of its facilities, with spending on these tending to outpace those in the state sector. Boarding facilities have also improved substantially with pupils enjoying separate bed-study rooms with en suite bathrooms – hardly the dormitories portrayed by popular films and books!
Support
As well as small class sizes and support for children from other countries, pupils can expect good quality personal support at an independent school. Concern for your child’s welfare will be central to their ethos. Independent schools will also provide good-quality provision for children with special educational needs (SEN), particularly those accredited by the ISC, where it is a precondition for accreditation. All varieties of need are catered for.
Personal development and future prospects
The classic aim of a public school education is to develop both the body and the mind. Indeed all aspects of many independent schools are geared to this end. The end result in many cases is a fully rounded individual able to make their way in the world confidently, displaying independence and social responsibility. As well as personal development, an independent education gives children the opportunity to make lasting friendships with people from all over the world, which may useful in the future. An independent school education will also tend to be an advantage when applying to university, as pupils will have had a rigorous broad education, clearly demonstrating what strengths they have. Many independent schools also have well-established links with the more prestigious universities in the UK, which have become regular destinations for their pupils.
Other than academic results, all of the above tend to be fairly intangible and unlikely to influence rankings or league tables too much. Nevertheless, in many
ways, these are more important to the future development of your child and illustrate the ‘value added’ advantage the UK independent sector still enjoys.
Next steps
• Look at as many rankings and league tables as possible to see if there is a consensus about any school you are interested in. Regard this as no more than a rough guide as to the truth, but it may help you identify schools of interest for your child.
• What is right for your child is paramount, so rankings will probably only play a modest role in establishing the correct school for them. Even if you are solely interested in academic achievement, there will be other factors you will have to consider to ensure a happy stay for your child. For instance the size of the school, proportion of international students, quality of pastoral care, school environment and atmosphere, the quality of the head and the school management team, and much else. This will require research on your part to winnow down any potential short list identified from looking at rankings.
• You should also look at what the school itself says about itself, including if possible from parents, pupils and alumni. Although every school’s aim is to present
itself in the best light possible, it can be a useful addition or even corrective to the picture painted by rankings and league tables.
• Finally, your own gut feelings about a school can be useful; it will after all be your child attending it, and it will matter whether you are comfortable with a
school or not.