The odds are loaded against children from disadvantaged backgrounds who apply for grammar schools in Kent, suggests a study.
Entrance tests for the county’s grammars “understate the true academic abilities” of poorer children, says the Education Datalab report. The “heavily” selective county will be a useful case study if grammars are rolled out nationally, says the study.
Kent County Council said it was working to boost social mobility in grammars.
Ministers have announced plans for a new generation of grammar schools in England by 2020.”We want to see more children from disadvantaged families get into grammars,” said Education Secretary Justine Greening in a speech last month.
But Education Datalab’s analysis suggests the selection process in Kent does not always identify “the most academically capable children”. The report uses data for children who sat the 11-plus in 2015, obtained under Freedom of Information law by Kent Education Network, which opposes selective education. The figures show 12% of free school meals pupils passed the test in 2015, compared with 30% of their better off classmates. Read more