News & Events
The excellent "Added Value" of the Cathedral School
Hereford
Cathedral School have every reason to celebrate the recent "Value Added"
league tables. When comparing the attainment of Year 9 pupils with those
of similar ability of other schools, HCS were ranked 14th in England in
the Daily Telegraph league tables. An unprecedented 20% of Year 9 pupils
achieved Level 8 in Mathematics, the highest grading available, many others
also achieving beyond expectation.
The Headmaster, Dr Howard Tomlinson, said "We are delighted that the hard work of the teachers and pupils should result in such success. The outstanding "Value Added" that the Cathedral School gives is confirmed by a report we have just received about our 'A' level results".
In the report, from Dr Kevin Conway CBE of the Educational Research Consultancy Alkemygold Ltd., said: "It is an outstanding report by national standards including all sectors - independent as well. 70% of the quality of teaching and learning students experienced was at grades 1,2 or 3 which matches the best I have reported on and I have completed well over 600 reports in the last few years. So your staff and head have much to be proud of and your sixth formers are getting a top-notch deal."
The A-Level Performance System (ALPS) developed by Kevin Conway over the past decade while principal at Greenhead College is now regarded as a leading system of this type of analysis and it is very widely used nationally.
In the past decade over 2000 schools and 160 colleges have had copies of the ALPS (A-level Performance Systems) methodology, supported by extensive in-service training courses run in the college and via national organisations such as Network Training, NFER, Matrix, Cornwall College and SHA. The ideas and processes are now widely understood and have formed the basis of the Sixth Form College threshold criteria. In the past few years just over 540 sets of data from schools and colleges have been analysed and reports written, including all but a few of the Sixth Form College sector of 104 colleges.
