54% of GCSE pupils lack basic skills
3:58pm Thursday 11th January 2007 in Education By Martina Smit
London has the best GCSE results in England
EVEN though London achieved its best ever GCSE results, more than half of its pupils failed to get five decent grades that prepare them for the workplace.
New government figures show 54.2% of pupils did not get at least five Cs that include English and maths.
On the surface, London's figures seem excellent:
- For the third year running, state schools in the capital lead the rest of England.
- In Greater London, 58.3% of pupils got five or more Cs - 0.8% more than the national average.
- This year's London results is three percentage points better than last year.
- Almost one in three London schools saw 70% of its students score five good grades.
- In inner city schools, 12,400 pupils (54% of the total) achieved five Cs - twice as many as the 6,636 in 1997.
However, once English and maths are taken into account, the picture changes. London's 58.3% success rate then drops to 45.8%.
|
Business leaders said it was "unacceptable" that more than half of school leavers lacked the basic language and numeric skills needed in the world of work.
"Vocational subjects have helped to boost pass rates but merely mask the shocking truth that too many children are not performing well enough in basic skills," said David Frost, head of the British Chambers of Commerce.
"Talking to businesses across the country it is clear that they have to spend valuable time providing basic training in English and maths to new employees."
Nevertheless, schools minister Jim Knight praised schools across England for their highest ever GCSE results for the two basic subjects. Countrywide, 62,000 more pupils left school in 2006 equipped with English and maths than in 1997.
The capital's best school for last year's GSCEs was Bexley Grammar School in south-east London. All of its 222 pupils scored at least five Cs including English and maths.
A total of 37 schools got a 100% success rate, but Bexley came top as it had more students than any of the others.
London's worst achiever was Lilian Baylis Technology School in Kennington, south London, with just 11% of pupils managed five C grades that included English and maths.
Almost two thirds of the school's 110 students do not speak English as a first language, and one in seven qualifies for free school dinners.
Transport for London marked London's record breaking results with a special edition Tube map.
It replaces the stations with some of the capital's successful schools, teachers, GCSE students and successful Londoners who went to state schools. These include June Sarpong, Sir Michael Caine, Emma Thompson and Rio Ferdinand.
- The London results can be found at www.dfes.gov.uk/performancetables.
