The Effects of the Selective System of Secondary Education in Northern Ireland

Author(s): Tony Gallagher and Alan Smith
Document Type: Report
Year: 2001
Publisher: Department of Education for Northern Ireland
Place of Publication: Bangor
ISBN: I1897592566
Subject Area(s): Education

Abbreviations: NI - Northern Ireland, GCSE - General Certificate of Secondary Education

Background to the Research

  • NI has operated a selective system of secondary and grammar schools since 1947. Between 1976 and 1979 the Labour government attempted to move NI away from the selective arrangements, but this was halted by the Conservative government elected in 1979. Following the election of the Labour government in 1997, discussion on this topic led the then Education Minister, Tony Worthington, to decide that any proposals for change should be based on an informed discussion and debate. To this end, two research projects were commissioned. The first involved an evaluation of the delayed selection system used in the Craigavon area and was published by DENI in 1998. The second, comprised an examination of the effects of the selective system of secondary and grammar schools.

Research Approach

  • The research was organised around two main elements. The first comprised a consideration of systematic change in schools in NI over the last ten years, both as a consequence of the selective system and the introduction of open enrolment following the 1989 Education Reform Order. The second comprised a detailed consideration of the impact of selection across a number of more specific domains including: post-primary schools; pupil motivation and attitudes; teachers; primary schools; coaching and Test preparation; and, public attitudes and perceptions of education.
  • Data collected and analysed for the study included:
    • Interviews with teachers and pupils in secondary and grammar schools drawn from across NI.
    • An examination of the inter-relationship between secondary and grammar schools within one area of NI, and comparison with schools in a similar area in Scotland.
    • Interviews, observations and pupil data on teaching and learning in primary schools.
    • Postal questionnaires on preparation for the Transfer Tests sent to every primary school in NI.
    • Postal questionnaires to a sample of parents drawn from across NI.
    • Focus groups interviews with groups of parents, young people, employers, and training and third level education providers.
    • Analysis of statistical data held by education departments in NI, London and Scotland.
    • Reviews of research and policy on the organisation of schools in other European and OECD countries.

Main Findings

Impact on primary schools

  • Preparation for the Transfer Test has a backwash effect on the Key Stage 2 curriculum, resulting in a narrowing on the curriculum as attention is focused in Test preparation and memorisation of information. In consequence, pupils are not receiving the broad and balanced experience envisaged by the statutory curriculum. In addition, Test preparation encourages teachers to adopt a teaching and learning style which is not to the benefit of all pupils.
  • Practically all primary schools prepare pupils for the Transfer Tests and most begin in Year 6. Out-of-school coaching is widespread and parents who can afford it pay up to £15 per hour for this support. The main reason is to enhance their child's chance of achieving a higher grade. Primary school principals do not think that out-of-school coaching provides educational benefit.
  • In recent years the parents of a third of pupils opt their children out of the Tests. The main reason is a belief that their child will not achieve a grade that will gain entry to a grammar school. Many parents say that the decision to opt-out is informed by advice from their child's teacher. However there is a significant minority of primary schools where few pupils opt out of the Transfer Tests, yet a high proportion of pupils receives a grade D.

Impact on post-primary schools

  • The most important factor governing entry to grammar schools is the achievement of a high Transfer Test grade. However, due to the link between the Transfer Test performance and social background, the intake to grammar schools is predominantly comprised of pupils from non-mannual backgrounds while the intake of secondary schools is largely comprised of pupils from manual backgrounds.
  • Since 1990 the proportion of pupils who enter grammar schools had increased. This was caused by the impact of open enrolment in combination with demographic trends, and the opening of two new Catholic grammar schools in the 1990's. The secondary schools that are still over-subscribed say that the ability profile of their intake has changed. Secondary teachers believed that open enrolment had created instability in the size and quality of their intakes and increased the challenge they face.
  • Teachers in secondary schools say that many pupils arrive with a sense of failure. In consequence the schools set a high priority on providing a supportive environment and work to enhance the self-esteem and self-confidence of their pupils. By contrast, grammar school teachers say that their pupils arrive with a sense of success and most pupils can be motivated to work towards the high academic standards expected in their schools.
  • Interviews with post-primary teachers indicate that there is a limited curriculum continuity between Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3. This is attributed to the impact of the Transfer Test preparation on Key Stage 2.
  • Despite the increased proportion of pupils going to grammar schools, there is limited evidence that the schools have altered their curriculum or ethos to take account of this change. There is more evidence of innovation and change in secondary schools. In particular, a minority of secondary schools have developed innovative whole-school measures geared towards enhancing academic standards.
  • In grammar schools, performance of pupils at 16 years is closely linked to the academic quality of the schools' intake. In secondary schools performance at 16 years is more closely linked with, although not wholly explained by, social disadvantage. Across all school types girls achieve higher attainment than boys.
  • Overall, grammar schools show particular high levels of academic achievement. However, the corollary of this is that there is a long tail of low-achieving secondary schools. This may be an inevitable consequence of a selective system.
  • In non-selective systems the average enrolment of schools is higher than is the case in NI. An analysis of enrolment numbers against school places suggests that the current total of 238 grammar and secondary schools be reduced to 178 in a non-selective system. An expansion of integrated education and/or co-educational schools would allow this number to be reduced still further.

The impact on teachers

  • In part due to parental pressure for 'good' results, primary teachers say that the final years of primary school are organised around the demands of the Transfer Tests. Pupils are often categorised on the basis of their likely Test performance. Teachers often have low or modest expectations of pupils who are not entered into for the Tests and there is some suggestion that less attention is devoted to their education needs.
  • Teachers say that they have faced considerable pressure from the wave of reforms and initiatives over the past decade. Secondary teachers sat that this is exacerbated by the lower status accorded to their schools, the instability in their intakes and the diverse needs of their pupils.
  • Furthermore, secondary school teachers feel that, despite the diversity of their pupils, their schools are judged on their academic performance. By contrast grammar school teachers say they primarily focus on achieving high academic standards. While some expressed sympathy for the task facing secondary teachers and concern about the unfairness of the Transfer Tests, others were more concerned whether they could cope if there was a move towards non-selective arrangements.

The impact on pupils

  • The most important factor for a pupil in achieving a high GCSE score is gaining a place in a grammar school. All other things being equal, being in a grammar school will add almost 16 GCSE points, equivalent to three GCSEs at grade C, to a pupil's attainment at 16 years.
  • After taking GCSEs, grammar pupils are most likely to return to school to take A Levels and work towards higher education. Secondary pupils follow a much wider range of routes, the most common of which is to enter further education.
  • There are few differences between the attitudes to school of grammar and secondary pupils. Also, there are few differences between pupils in NI and pupils in Scotland on these attitudinal measures. Overall pupils vies their own school in positive terms and focus on it rather than comparing it with others.
  • Interviews with Year 8 and Year 12 pupils showed that they were aware of the differences between the school types. Often the differences indicated an awareness of the higher public esteem and status in which grammar schools are held. Many pupils lose contact with primary school friends who take a different route through post-primary education. However it was only among the secondary pupils that there was any sense of resentment that former friends at grammar schools now saw themselves as somehow or other better than them.

Society

  • People's views on selection and the education system more generally appear to be related to their own experience. Those who passed the Transfer Test or who went to grammar schools tend to hold more positive views of the current system than those who either 'failed' the Tests or went to secondary schools. Despite this, most people have positive memories of their post-primary school.
  • The high academic standards achieved by grammar schools are held in high regard throughout society. However, many people also worry about the potential unfairness of the system as a whole and, more particularly, the level of low achievement that exists. Employers and others are adamant that their views of individuals are not affected by an individual's Transfer status. They say they are more interested in subsequent achievements and qualifications.

 

 

 

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