Gove plans to overhaul league tables for judging schools

Under the proposals, league tables would be overhauled to expand the numbers of measures schools are ranked on. But teaching unions raised concerns that the move could have a “perverse effect” and said league tables already “distort” pupils’ learning.

Plans due to be outlined by Education Secretary Michael Gove today include publishing figures which show, for each school, the difference between the lowest achieving pupils, the highest achieving, and those performing as expected.

The figures will be included in next year’s secondary school league tables, which are published in January. A further measure will show the whole distribution of performance within a school.

At the moment, schools are ranked on the proportion of pupils getting five GCSEs at grades A* to C.

But concerns have been raised that this does not take into account every child’s performance, and has led to schools focusing on pupils on the borderline of getting C or D grades.

The general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, Christine Blower, said: “No amount of tweaking alters the fact that league tables have a distorting effect on pupils’ learning. This is not a reform which will allow schools to focus on teaching and learning in a balanced way.”

University and College Union general secretary Sally Hunt added: “I fear that more UTCs (university technical colleges) could lead to selection by the back door and a system where students, typically from working-class backgrounds, are channelled into vocational subjects in relatively under-resourced colleges.

“There is a real risk that we further damage social mobility as wealthier contemporaries are encouraged to pursue traditional academic routes in school or on high-tech courses only available in UTCs.”