Website reveals best and worst of schools
Parents across Scotland have a chance to compare the performance of their child's school to others in their area thanks to new online data.
- By Grant Smith, education reporter
- Published in the Courier : 16.12.10
- Published online : 16.12.10 @ 01.23pm
The Scottish Schools Online website has published this year's exams results for all secondary schools, along with figures on the take-up of free meals, absence rates and leaver destinations.
Copies of each school's most recent report by education inspectors are also available, along with information about pupil and teacher numbers.
As ever, the data shows wide variations between individual schools and between local authorities.
Generally, schools in better-off areas do better than those in poorer neighbourhoods, at least superficially.
However, there is no shortage of schools with lower than average exam results that are highly-regarded by inspectors because of the quality of the teachers and their lessons.
Also, deprivation is a key factor in determining attainment. Dundee has a take-up rate for free school meals much higher than the national average and has exam results well below average.
That means an element of caution is needed in interpreting the results.
For exam results, 78% of Scottish pupils passed five or more Standard Grades at general level this summer.
Perth and Kinross matched the national average, with Angus and Fife a little below. Only 66% of Dundee pupils achieved the pass rate.
The pass rate for three or more Highers was 24% nationally. Perth and Kinross had 27%, while Fife and Angus were again a little below average and Dundee was on 20%.
At the level of individual schools there are some substantial differences, often influenced by the relative prosperity of their catchment areas.
Disparities
In Dundee, for example, Grove Academy draws its pupils from well-off Broughty Ferry, while Braeview Academy's catchment takes in the Whitfield housing estate.
The pass rate for three or more Highers at Grove was 42% — seven times greater than at Braeview.
Such disparities can be found in all local authorities.
The figures show 14.4% of Scottish pupils qualify for free school meals.
Dundee's rate is 22.1%, with Angus and Fife below average and Perth and Kinross on just 6.2% of pupils.
When it comes to unauthorised absences, only Angus on 2.1% beats the national average of 2.6%.
The rates for Dundee and Fife are one-and-a-half times greater than average.
Just over 54,000 pupils left school in Scotland this year, with 36% of them going into higher education and 27% into further education.
Another 5% went on to training courses and 19% found jobs. That leaves 12% out of work and 1% whose status is unknown.
Dundee ex-pupils are less likely to have gone to university, but more likely to have gone to college. They are also less likely to be working and more likely to be unemployed.
Fife, Angus and Perth and Kinross are all close to the average for higher and further education, although the latter has a higher than average proportion of ex-pupils going into employment at 23%.
Dundee City Council leader Ken Guild said, "Dundee has a history of being a low-income economy.
"Exam results are not the only way to measure a school's effectiveness."
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