By Martin Walker
Aycliffe’s two secondary schools are ranked below the national average when it comes to GCSE results, figures published on Thursday reveal.
Government data published as part of secondary school league tables show the national average of young people getting five good GCSEs or equivalents currently stands at 58.2%.
But the tables show Woodham Community College on 52%, and Greenfield Community College on 50%.
The two schools also rank in the bottom half of the table for Durham schools (32nd and 34th respectively, out of 41).
Greenfield do fair better with their ‘value added score’ (a statistical measure of how well pupils are helped to progress from their starting point) of 996.4, with Woodham scoring 989.7.
The report, published in detail on the BBC’s website earlier today, shows how just one in 15 (6.5%) pupils starting secondary school in England “behind” for their age goes on to get five good GCSEs including English and Maths.
The government data published as part of secondary school league tables suggests the majority of schools are failing struggling pupils.
The Department for Education data covers England’s more than 5,000 secondary schools with more than 200 pieces of information being published for each one – almost four times as much as last year.
Much of the information is broken down by pupil type, with scores offered for low, medium and high-attaining pupils, and those from disadvantaged backgrounds as well as non-disadvantaged.
As expected, those from disadvantaged backgrounds (classed as those on free school meals or in local authority care) do less well.
Only a third (34%) of these children achieve the government’s benchmark of five GCSEs – or equivalent qualifications – graded A* to C, including English and maths.
In 909 schools, not one low-attaining pupil (those who did not reach Level 4 at the end of primary school) reached this threshold.
At the other end of the spectrum, 95% of pupils who started school “ahead” for their age (achieving Level 5 at the end of primary school) got five good GCSEs, including English and maths.
The full statistics are available by clicking here
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