FIRST my hearty congratulations to all those who have gained passes in their GCSEs this year – as well as all the teachers whose instruction over so many hours will have been so vital.
What I feel would be most illuminating is statistics that show relevant comparisons between UK and Jersey results. It appears to me that every year our students outperform those of the UK and I question if we are comparing ‘apples and pears’? This also goes for A-levels, which are about to be announced for 2017.
My understanding is that somewhere close to 15% of UK scholars are in the independent sector whereas over 50% are privately educated in Jersey. If true these numbers surprise me.
Because of the greater politicisation of education in the UK, statistics are produced for all schools – with much celebration where independents get outperformed by some state schools.
Over here there has been recent challenges to the States subsidisation of Jersey independent schools and the price we should be paying our teachers . It would therefore seem useful to have comparative statics on exam successes to inform these debates.
It would be great to applaud a real Jersey success, but not if such result is an unfair comparisons. As in my opening statement nothing detracts from every success by all pupils and teachers.
26 Harbour Reach, St Helier
