2010 GCSE Results for Southwark & Lewisham

[BB100]

2010 GCSE results for southwark http://www.southwark.gov.uk/news/article/75/great_result_for_gcse_students_in_soutwark

2010 GCSE results for lewisham http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NewsAndEvents/News/GCSEResults2010.htm (scroll to bottom of page)

Interesting to see Haberdasher Askes results have tumbled 20% now they cannot cream off the most able.

[sillywoman]

Ooh, very interesting - for some reason I thought that Kingsdale had more passes than Charter last year? I must have got that wrong? Agree about Haberdasher Aske's lower results being interesting too.

[BB100]

These results are 5 A-C passess including maths and english. Schools like to publish their results based on 5 A-C whatever the subject which are always much higher, so you have to check you are comparing like for like.

Kingsdale's results aren't available yet so don't know whats happened there as they have not published it on their website either.

[BB100]

Harris City Crystal Palace 88.44% 5+ A*-C grades including English and Maths makes it the best performing state school around here.

[sillywoman]

Wow BB100, does that stat include 'English & maths'? or is it for all their GCSE's whatever they may be?

Oops sorry - just read through above post properly. Please ignore this one. Doh!

[Dulwich_ Park_ Fairy]

Harris City Crystal Palace 88.44% 5+ A*-C grades including English and Maths makes it the best performing state school around here.

Its pretty much a grammar school though.

[randomv]

How is it basically a grammar school? My understanding was thAt the vast majority of pupils come from the catchment area and only 10 or 20% are children with a particular gift?

[Dulwich_ Park_ Fairy]

How is it basically a grammar school? My understanding was thAt the vast majority of pupils come from the catchment area and only 10 or 20% are children with a particular gift?

Because the kids have to sit an independent test as part of the admissions process. I had a look around there, and the intake isn't paricularily reflective of the area, seemed overwhelmingly white and middle-class.

[randomv]

Oh ok...but unlike a grammar they don't simply cream off the top 2% of test applicants - they take applicants from across the test results and they apply very rigorous streaming once in the school. As for the area...point taken, although there are large Areas of Crystal Palace (esp near the school), upper Norwood and Sydenham which are all within the catchment area and which ARE very White and middle class!

[millymoll]

Sillywoman mentioned last year's Kingsdale/Charter results. I think Kingsdale had a slightly higher percentage of students who had passed 5+ GCSE's but when looking at those pupils who had passed 5+ including Maths and English, the Charter School came out a bit better.

[sillywoman]

randomv Wrote:

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> Oh ok...but unlike a grammar they don't simply

> cream off the top 2% of test applicants - they

> take applicants from across the test results and

> they apply very rigorous streaming once in the

> school.

Isn't that exactly what Haberdashers used to do, the whole banding thing - taking the top whatever percentage from each band? Interesting to notice the massive drop in their results now they've stopped doing it. Down from 90% A-C's to 70% in a year.

[BB100]

Dulwich_ Park_ Fairy Wrote:

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I had a look

> around there, and the intake isn't paricularily

> reflective of the area, seemed overwhelmingly

> white and middle-class.

You need to go when all the kids are there - it is a very good mix. And actually the current year 8 is predominately black - maybe becuase Kingsdale creamed off the white kids, (check Kingsdale OFSTED report remarks about their Y7 intake).

OFSTED 2009 Harris Crystal Palace: 'The (Harris) academy is ethnically diverse with the largest groups from White British heritage and Caribbean descent. The proportion of students with a first language other than English is well above average. The proportion of students eligible for free school meals is above average. Students are drawn from a wide area across the inner city.'

[BB100]

sillywoman Wrote:

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> randomv Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > > Isn't that exactly what Haberdashers used to do,

> the whole banding thing - taking the top whatever

> percentage from each band? Interesting to notice

> the massive drop in their results now they've

> stopped doing it. Down from 90% A-C's to 70% in a

> year.

No, Haberdashers used to offer places based on a combination of interview with the parents, interview with the child and a selection test. It's only in the past few years that they started random allocation over 9 ability bands based on non-verbal reasoning tests - and it's these children that are now taking their GCSEs.

Interestingly, Harris use exactly the same admissions method and their results keep going up. Which I expect is a reflection on the quality of teaching because lots of the best teachers left Askes when they changed their intake policy, whereas Harris continue to recruit talented staff.

Last year Aske's had to change their intake policy again and are now doing distance from school across 9 bands of ability. Lewisham LA really know how to run a good school into the ground.

[millymoll]

Anyone know this year's results for Kingsdale and St Saviours?

[Dulwich_ Park_ Fairy]

No, Haberdashers used to offer places based on a combination of interview with the parents, interview with the child and a selection test. It's only in the past few years that they started random allocation over 9 ability bands based on non-verbal reasoning tests - and it's these children that are now taking their GCSEs.

No, Haberdashes used to only have interviews with the kids and parents, they were forced to get rid of these when Lewisham council realised that very few black kids were "passing" these interviews. Results started to drop after this so they then brought in the "test" which of course was for banding purposes only. Results started going back up very quickly afterwards. Go figure.

[BB100]

I'm going on what I know from relatives and friends going through the school.

At least 12-14 years ago they were still doing interviews and tests because I remember helping my nieces two years apart to prepare for it.

Then about 10-11 years ago Lewisham stopped the interviews and only did testing. But the tests were criticised by parents because they asked children to write about their last holiday which parents alleged was being used to indicate the childs social-eco background and influence selection. I know there was a test at that time because my neighbour told me she had complained to the council about it.

So they introduced the non-verbal reasoning test (taking the top of 9 bands) with random allocation - which is the kids who have just done their GCSEs (and is the same test and method Harris are doing). I know this because my nephew took both and said they were more or less the same. They are both still doing this test but for 2009 intake Askes stopped the random allocation.

As far as I'm aware they have always done testing. What makes you say otherwise? And in any case their results have dropped 20% this year which doesn't support the idea that their selection testing is helping them to recruit the most able children.

This was Aske's prediction for itself this year so something has gone very wrong: '?In 2010 Haberdashers? Aske?s Hatcham College aims to achieve 95% 5 A-C GCSE grades (including Maths and English' http://www.hahc.org.uk/index.php?/news/article/haberdashers_askes_academies_federation_top_of_the_class_for_gcse_results/

[brezzo]

74.5% of St Saviour's pupils achieved five or more GCSEs including Maths or English at grade C or above making it "most improved" school in the borough. Two of its sixth formers will be going to Cambridge next month.

[dc]

I note that HAHC has a "Chief Executive Officer". As the man from the FT would say: "poor returns in a positive trading environment". ;-)

[elizabeth40]

BREAKING NEWS RE KINGSDALE!

"We are delighted to announce that Kingsdale is setting new standards in educational achievement in the London Borough of Southwark. Almost 95% of our students achieved 5 or more top GCSE grades in their summer 2010 external examinations. This is a new academic record for all schools in the Local Authority. We are equally pleased that over 70% of entries in English, Mathematics and Science were graded at A*-C and over 20% of all students achieved a minimum of three A*/ A grades".

[Barmygirl]

Yeah right, I wonder why it took so long for them to publish their results? I look forward with interest to see their published results including 5 a to cs later this year. I do not believe for a minute it will be 70 per cent. I don't blame them for trying to obfuscate the results because of the current system/climate and I do think Kingsdale has much to offer its students.

[elizabeth40]

70% is accurate. They haven't obfuscated the results and would not be able to get away with doing so. It took so long to publish them because their examinations officer was on sick leave. Nothing sinister.

[victor]

The most recognised measure nationally at GCSE is the 5 passes at A*-C including english and maths. What did Kingsdale achieve?

[bawdy-nan]

but in hot pursuit of the magic percentage students getting 5 a-c grades I understand that charter is severely limiting the number of pupils in an intake who can take any more than that number which means better stats overall on the 5 gcse measure but children having their life chances severely restricted at 13. very poor chance of university place with a measly 5 gcse's.

[elizabeth40]

victor Wrote:

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> The most recognised measure nationally at GCSE is

> the 5 passes at A*-C including english and maths.

> What did Kingsdale achieve?

I already stated the results. This is from their website.

"We are delighted to announce that Kingsdale is setting new standards in educational achievement in the London Borough of Southwark. Almost 95% of our students achieved 5 or more top GCSE grades in their summer 2010 external examinations. This is a new academic record for all schools in the Local Authority. We are equally pleased that over 70% of entries in English, Mathematics and Science were graded at A*-C and over 20% of all students achieved a minimum of three A*/ A grades".

[Barmygirl]

That's not the same as the percentage of children who passed English and Maths in their 5 As to C and if it were true I'm sure they wouldn't have expressed it in this unclear way. I.e. 70 percent of students may pass English but not all of those will also have Maths. Indeed Science is included here and I am sure 70 percent will have passed Science but of those how many also got English and Maths? Anyhow I have nothing against this school or it's head who is clearly doing a wonderful job - you should never choose a school using GCSE statistics alone.[/b]