Tens of thousands of students in England leave school every year aged 16 with no or very limited qualifications. The Rowntree Report aimed to understand the large number of factors associated with low achievement.

A problem with boys

White, working-class, British boys were persistently the worse performers over any other ethnic or gender group in schools, according to a report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in June 2007.

The study used four different measures of low achievement:

• Students receiving no passes at all in their GCSE/GNVQs at Key Stage 4.



• Students obtaining nothing better than a 'D' in any exam.



• Students not getting a pass in at least one of English or Maths.



• Students not achieving at least five passes at any grade including English and Maths.

The report made headlines when it was released because it finalised what many had known for some time - that there was a problem with boys and it didn't look like it was getting any better.

Key findings

• Nearly half of all low achievers are white British males.



• White British students on average are more likely than other ethnic groups to persist in low achievement.



• Boys outnumber girls as low achievers by three to two.



• Low reading and writing scores at primary school led to low educational achievement later on.



• Chinese and Indian pupils are most successful in avoiding low achievement.



• Afro-Caribbean pupils are the least successful on average, though their results have been improving faster than the national average. When allowance is made for the fact that more Caribbean boys come from working class homes, they do as well as white pupils.



• Low achievers are less likely to do well in the job market. And in general they’re not well prepared for participation in society. Many of them are at risk of unemployment or even falling into low-level criminal activity.



• Disadvantaged students are more likely to attend poorly performing secondary schools, and can miss out on the best teaching.



• Not speaking English at home only affects students in the short-term. African and Asian students who experience it have usually caught up by secondary school.



• Looked-after children and those with Special Educational Needs often do not get the support they require.



• Spending more on students and a smaller class sizes do play a positive part, particularly for low-achieving students.



• It also suggested that parents speaking to their children and getting involved with their early education can make a difference to how they learn.
• The study also found that some government programmes have helped to reduce low achievement, such as Excellence in Cities and Specialist Schools.

Conclusion

The report reached the following conclusion:

The education system needs to reach more of the children who the system is failing, particularly children in care, kids with Special Educational Needs and the large number who are need more support to learn.

The provision for the very youngest children (known as Early Years), has to do better to reach the most disadvantaged people, help them to improve their parenting skills and that in turn will help their children’s early learning.

Schools need to use more imagination and use their budgets better to help reform features of their system, which not only don’t work but actually contribute to low achievement.

The report can be downloaded from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation website»

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Ruth Miskin – What the Government Should Do | The Rose Review | Improving Literacy: The Government's Strategy | Leitch Review of Skills | Getting the Basics Right | The Rowntree Report (June 2007) | The Long Term Costs

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