Poorer kids fall behind their wealthier classmates at secondary school – even if they were ahead of them at primary age
New study from the Social Mobility Commission says that white poorer children suffer the most from one of the "great injustices" of the education system
POORER children fall behind wealthier kids at secondary school even if the outperformed them at primary age, the Social Mobility Commission has found.
The Government’s own report says the white poorer children suffer the most, describing the situation as “one of the great injustices” of the education system.
And they warned that the secondary school drop off means poor children are failing to finish school with the qualifications to succeed in life as they make less progress year-on-year than more well off classmates.
The damning probe came as it emerged schools are facing the first real-terms cuts to their funding since the mid-1990s, according to a leading think tank.
Spending per pupil is set to fall by 6.5 percent by 2020, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, although it added that school funding has been well protected over the last two decades.
Instead it is sixth-formers who are facing a continuing squeeze on budgets, with spending on further education students falling by 6.7 per cent since 2010 — with a further drop of 6.5 per cent is due.
It means that funding for 16-18-year-olds is no higher than it was almost 30 years ago.
Headteachers had already warned that the reduction in funding was already putting pupils’ progress at risk and that prospects for improvement were “bleak”.
The Social Mobility Commission say the gap between poor pupils’ attainment at the end of primary school and the end of secondary school has widened in recent years.
Since 2012 pupils from low-income families have made less progress year-on-year than richer classmates.
Children on free school meals achieve almost half a GCSE grade less progress in core subjects than better-off pupils, the report said.
Home life also has a “big impact”, with poorer children less likely to benefit from effective homework routines, access to books and computers or cultural and sporting experiences.
Children from low-income backgrounds are also affected by the fact they are more at risk of behaviour issues and exclusion from schools.
The research, conducted by LKMco and Education Datalab using data from the National Pupil Database, finds that most of the gap in progress stems from differences in achievement between children at the same school rather than variations between different schools.
Social Mobility Commission boss Alan Milburn said: “One of the shocking features of our education system is that the gap between poor pupils and their better-off peers increases during their time in school rather than reducing.”
The former Labour Cabinet Minister added: “This new research suggests that the progress they make in primary school is all but wiped out during secondary.
“The consequence is that successive generations of poor kids are being let down by a school system that is supposed to be there to help them move up and get on.
Last night the Department of Education said: “We want to create a country where everyone has a fair chance to go as far as their talents will take them, and education is at the heart of this."
But a spokesman added “we know there is more to do.”
They went on: “Funding every pupil fairly and according to their needs is at the heart of delivering the Government’s pledge to build a country that works for everyone.”
But last night furious teaching unions hit out at the “deeply upsetting” problem and “shocking research”.
ATL general secretary Mary Bousted accused the Government of doing nothing about “the persistently strong link between poverty and low educational attainment is well documented over many years.”
She added: “This will only get worse as schools face real-term funding cuts for the first time in a generation.”
