Background to the Research

• The Transfer Test results are used by grammar schools (and secondary schools that have grammar school streams approved by the Department of Education) to help them decide which pupils to admit. The Transfer Test is not compulsory and only those pupils whose parents wish them to be considered for a grammar school place need to be entered. Pupils with a statement of special educational need are not entered for the test.
• Since 1993/94, the Transfer Test has been administered through two papers with questions on english, maths and science asked in each. The questions are based on the statutory programmes of study for Key Stage 2. Since 1997/98, technology questions have been included along with science.
  

Research Approach

• This briefing presents findings from an analysis of the 2001/02 Transfer Test results, in relation to sex, school management type and free school meals band.
• The statistics on Transfer Procedure grades are taken from a dataset supplied by the NICCEA, which is responsible for developing, setting and marking the test papers.
• The Transfer Procedure data used relate to primary schools and to preparatory departments of grammar schools.
• Data on free school meal entitlement and Year 7 pupil numbers are taken from the annual School Census for that academic year.
  

Main Findings

• Of those who sat the Transfer Test, a slightly higher proportion of boys (39.2%) than girls (38.6%) achieved grade A. Each year from 1995/96, apart from 1999/2000, the proportion of boys achieving grade A has been higher than the proportions of girls, although the differences have been small. However, a markedly higher proportion of boys (38%) than girls (31%) did not sit the tests.
• There is a marked relationship between social disadvantage and achievement in the Transfer Test. As the proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals increases, the proportion of pupils achieving grade A decreases. Of those who sat the test, pupils at schools in the lowest free school meals band were more than two and a half times as likely to achieve a grade A as those at schools in the highest free schools meal band. Moreover, in general, as the proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals rose, so too did the proportion of pupils not sitting the test.
• Of those who sat the test, a lower proportion of pupils at schools under Catholic management achieved a grade A (38%) than at schools under Other management (40%). This pattern has been evident since 1995/96 and reflects the higher proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals in Catholic schools. Around a third of pupils in each sector did not sit the tests.
• In contrast to the overall position, within each free school meals band a greater proportion of pupils at schools under Catholic management achieved a grade A than at schools under Other management.