ISC Bulletin 24

7 May 2009

Contents

Chairman's welcome: Dame Judith Mayhew Jonas
Chief Executive's Update
Public benefit Update
Meeting the Charity Test and Demonstrating Public Benefit in Scotland
ISC Job Zone: The Free Recruitment Service for Schools
British Schools Abroad
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award
Exam Trends
Educating Digital Natives - ICT and Schools
University Admissions 2008 - Celebrating the Success
Equality, Diversity and Education: How Football Helps to Foster Change
Why Opt for Home Education?
The Recession - Independent Schools Fight Back
The Cross-Association Leadership Project
Impact of New Immigration Rules on Pupil Recruitment and Retention

Welcome to the spring edition of the ISC Bulletin

Dame Judith Mayhew Jonas, ISC Chairman

This is a challenging time for all businesses. Independent schools, which are essentially small to medium-sized enterprises, are having to face up to the effects of the recession just like everyone else. The encouraging news, however, is that the independent schools sector is far from typical, and that it would be wrong to talk of doom, gloom and economic meltdown.

As Larner Bernard's article points out, in the last recession in the early 1990s pupil numbers in ISC schools fell gradually over five years, but the total fall from 1992-96 was only 2.5%, and numbers immediately bounced back up thereafter. This was during a period when interest rates and inflation were much higher than they are this time around. Most parents will be under less financial pressure given the recent falls in mortgage interest rates, although the fact that house prices are falling faster this time, and may still have further to go, may make it less easy to cash in on equity. On balance this might suggest a modest and manageable reduction in pupil numbers.

Of course, much will also depend on the impact of the recession on employment, and where redundancies will occur. Some talk of a middle class recession but this is a simplification and the picture is patchy. The evidence so far points to sharp falls in discretionary expenditure - cars, house, furniture, holidays - with expenditure on essentials holding up or even increasing. This is good news for independent schools, since experience suggests that expenditure on education is an essential, and the last thing that families will cut back on when times are tight.

Indeed, this experience is being borne out in practice so far. Heads tell us that pupil numbers are holding up well, and that there is still plenty of interest at open days and parent meetings for future enrolments. The HMC survey published in February gave substance to this picture. The ISC Census shows that pupil numbers increased marginally to 514,531, up from 511,677 last year.

Heads and Bursars will of course be prudent, and plan for the worst. They will look at their cost bases, consider how to market their schools more effectively, and make contingency plans. But this is about sound management, not a crisis. Interestingly many parents are now paying school fees up front because returns on deposits and equities are poor, and paying for education in advance is seen as a better investment.

There are those who want to do down independent schools and would welcome bad times. My message to schools and to the public is that we should stop predicting the worst for our independent schools, and instead celebrate their successes and achievements. Parents are still queuing up to send their children to our schools because they offer the highest standard of education in the world and they produce bright, well-rounded adults able to take on all the challenges that the modern globalised world can throw at them. There will always be demand for quality, even in a recession.

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Chief Executive's Update

David Lyscom

I have now been Chief Executive at ISC for over six months. In that time much has changed, and the focus of our ongoing work has been sharpened. ISC now has a new governance structure, with a small, decision-focused Board of Directors. This is backed up by an Advisory Council and Education Committee which will help guide our work and give us expert input on specific issues. We have a new Mission Statement (see www.isc.co.uk) that stresses the collaborative nature of ISC's relationship with our members. We also have new Strategic Objectives, focusing ISC on effective public affairs, high quality research, excellent events, valuable services for members, schools and parents, and sound management.

In my short time at ISC I have also identified a need for ISC to keep in closer contact with its stakeholders - Associations, Heads and schools. They deserve to know exactly what we are doing and indeed can help us focus on what is important to them, thereby ensuring that we provide value for money for their subscriptions. We have regular and frequent meetings with the Association Secretaries, and I believe that these have greatly increased the cohesion and transparency of ISC activity. We have also started a new monthly newsletter, ISCnews, aimed at Heads and senior management at member schools. In addition my senior management team and I are getting out and about much more, dropping in on national conferences, regional meetings and individual schools to present our work and discuss issues with individuals and groups. Our ISCias team will also be contacting Heads to make sure we are tailoring our information service to schools' and parents' needs.

One of the key tools at our disposal in developing our contact with the outside world is our website. Rosie Keeling has written about our new Job Zone. But that is only one example of how she has sharpened up our web-based services, both to schools and to parents. For parents, our school search facility, introduced last year, has bedded down, and we have taken effective measures to make it better known through publicity and by increasing its search engine rating. January 2009 saw nearly 100,000 hits on the ISC website, over 25% up on January 2008. ISC school profile pages were viewed 191,901 times in January 2009 and schools' own websites were accessed from the ISC website 39,144 times. For schools the Daily News Service has become an indispensible tool for finding out quickly what is topical on independent and wider education issues. We understand that some organisations find it more reliable and digestible than their own internal press service. We have also built up our Member Zone service to school subscribers (heads, bursars, governors and teachers). It is here where schools can find information and advice on legal and public affairs issues, as well as posting their open days and jobs.

ISCias has also been busy, building up its database of FAQs, answering individual telephone and e-mail enquiries from parents and schools, and creating a stock of articles that can be placed in regional newspapers and used by schools to profile themselves in their catchment area. So far they are placing an average of five articles per month, although we hope this will increase as schools help us identify new outlets. And talking of catchment areas, we have further developed our analysis service to schools. Using sophisticated postcode software we can offer a tailored service to schools at a fraction of the cost of outside consultants. These analyses allow schools to get full value for money from their marketing budgets by helping them focus their efforts where they will have maximum effect.

There are several articles in this Bulletin on specific public affairs issues. Mainly thanks to the work of our in-house legal experts ISC has become the interlocutor of choice for the government on legislative issues impacting on independent schools, and we have been able to influence the outcome of consultations, reviews and policy deliberations. At times this has caused tensions, such as over our efforts to provide information for schools on ContactPoint, consulting with the government while still maintaining our principled stand against the scheme. We have walked a similar tightrope with the Charity Commission over public benefit. I hope that both of the above, as well as our schools, understand this schizophrenic role and the positive benefits it can bring to all. While we disagree with some of the policies being put forward it is in no-one's interest that they are implemented badly.

We also have news of several eye-catching events coming up, most notably our Annual and Partnerships Conferences on 2nd and 3rd June respectively. We have lined up a glittering array of top-notch speakers for the Annual Conference focusing on the outstanding contribution that our schools make to the UK, in educational, economic and societal terms. We will also be addressing a number of other vital issues. The Partnerships conference, organised with the support of DCSF, will take a broad look at how independent schools can work together with maintained school colleagues to the benefit of both. It is not yet another conference on academies, but will cover the whole field of collaboration. We are also looking forward to hosting a Legal Update seminar in September, considering a number of crucial legislative issues affecting the sector. Later in the autumn, we will be holding our fourth annual SEN conference back-to-back with our highly successful Marketing event for heads and marketing directors in schools (3rd & 4th November respectively). Finally, we will finish 2009 with a groundbreaking conference, focusing on ICT strategy and policy issues, for school senior managers in December.

Our teacher induction programme, ISCtip, goes from strength to strength, with over 1100 NQTs a year being inducted with ISC's help and guidance. Over 700 schools are involved, some 250 of these will receive a visit this year, and 30 act as regional training centres. ISCtip training courses for tutors and mentors continue to be oversubscribed, in spite of our increasing the number of courses on offer.

The other piece in our jigsaw is ISC Research. Our new Head of Research and Intelligence, Larner Bernard, makes her first contributions to this Bulletin on the recession and university entrance. We also have important comparative research by Rudolf Eliott Lockhart showing the significance of ISC schools in raising national standards in the hard subjects of modern foreign languages, maths and the sciences, notably

• Only 1 in 7 A level entries comes from an ISC school. Yet this tiny fraction wins almost two thirds of the A grades in A level Languages, a third of the A grades in Science and a third of the A grades in Mathematics. At GCSE, ISC students who make up 1 in 15 of all GCSE students account for a massive 40% of the A* grades in Languages.
• Individual Sciences, Maths, Economics, Languages and Classics are disproportionately bolstered by entries from and results for ISC pupils.
• While the study of Languages nationally has dropped since national curriculum changes, with GCSE entries down by almost 40% over the last four years in the maintained sector, entries from ISC schools for Language GCSEs have grown over the same period.

Also in the research pipeline are our annual census, a preparatory school survey, a financial benchmarking survey, the social diversity survey, work on the economic and social contribution of ISC schools to the UK, and our usual exam results surveys in the summer. Over the last six months I have been impressed not only by the quality of the research work at ISC, but also at how vital it is in allowing ISC to have an authoritative voice, both with the press and in our public affairs lobbying.

These are turbulent times for ISC and its schools. We face the challenges of a recession at a time when the government is continually bombarding the sector with initiatives, regulations and restrictions. Independent schools have demonstrated their resilience over a period of many years, both good and bad, and I see no reason why that should not continue. Whatever the future brings I believe that ISC is well-placed to give our schools the support that they need, offering expertise, flexibility and muscle. We have a talented and dedicated team ready to deliver on ISC's new mission and objectives.

David Lyscom is ISC's Chief Executive.

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Public Benefit Update

Matthew Burgess addressed the haysmacintyre Schools Conference on public benefit in February. This is what he said.

The charitable status debate is, as I am sure you are all aware, reaching yet another of its milestones. And there have been many already:

• The Charities Act received Royal Assent in 2006, and came into force in stages over 2007 and 2008.
• The Charity Commission has published literally thousands of pages of guidance, draft guidance, consultation documents, and legal analysis - all of which, I should add, we have pored over and commented on.
• Lawyers and accountants have produced their own guides to the guidance - I am sure that some of you will have attended events before this one targeted specifically at decoding public benefit.
• Shortly before Christmas, the Charity Commission published final guidance for charities advancing education and charities charging fees. These add to the Charity Commission's general guidance, published 12 months ago, on public benefit.

And the next milestone will be the publication later this year of the Charity Commission's decisions on the charitable status of 12 charities, including five independent schools.

With all this guidance around, you would be entitled to think that the issues must be clear and well-understood. That schools could look forward with confidence to completing their annual returns to the Charity Commission. That any action required of schools would be plain and measurable. Sadly, you would be mistaken. In fact, one of the greatest travesties of the whole sorry saga of public benefit is that the Charity Commission's guidance effectively amounts to this: you can only be sure you meet the public benefit test if the Charity Commission tells you that you meet the public benefit test. In adopting this approach, the Commission has rejected ISC's central contention in our consultation response last year: that its guidance is not soundly based in law. Our views reflect those of many leading charity lawyers, some of whom share the platform with me today, including the Charity Law Association which stated in its response last year that the Commission's sector guidance "does not reflect accurately the current law on public benefit". It is a matter of concern that the regulator of the charity sector has chosen to ignore the advice of some of the most experienced charity law practitioners.

So amongst all these milestones, where have we reached?
I think the clearest way to think about public benefit now is to think in terms of two distinct tests:

• There is the real test of public benefit, deriving from charity law developed over centuries. The Charities Act 2006 did not change this test - in fact, the legislation specifically preserves the preexisting law on public benefit. It is under this test that all charitable schools have been established and operating to date. And without going into detail, there is little question in my mind that all schools meet the real public benefit test.
• But now, we have the Charity Commission's test. For clarity, let me refer to this as the "social benefit" test, partly to distinguish it from the real public benefit test, and partly because I think this more accurately describes what the Charity Commission is looking for.

The social benefit test derives from all the Charity Commission guidance. And whilst the Charity Commission would deny that they are setting new standards, I think it is beyond doubt that that is exactly what they have done. Their starting point is founded on policy, rather than law. They say, in effect, that charities charging fees exclude those who cannot afford to pay the fees, and that this exclusion is inconsistent with being a charity. The social benefit test goes on to require feecharging charities such as schools to demonstrate either that the fees are not exclusionary or that the school provides "other material opportunities" for those who cannot afford the fees to benefit.

Hence the focus on bursaries and playing fields. Bursaries, because they are the obvious way a school can show that pupils can attend the school without having to pay some or all of the fees. Playing fields, because they are a way to demonstrate that the school provides other material opportunities for those who are not pupils to benefit from the school.

But bursaries and playing fields are the start, not the end, of the Commission's social benefit test. The sector guidance is at pains to point out that these are but examples of the ways in which a fee-charging charity might overcome its embarrassment at having to charge fees. And all will be weighed in the balance by the Commission to determine whether the totality of social benefits is, or is not, sufficient to merit charitable status.

Two of the more common questions asked in the sector are: must we offer bursaries, even if we can't afford to; and  if we must, how much? The guidance offers little by way  of answers. Bursaries do not appear to be a pre-requisite  of meeting the social benefit test. And the Commission  refuses to be drawn on thresholds. We will have to wait  and see what the Commission's approach is to the five  English review schools, particularly those that offer little or no fee assistance.

In this current vacuum of definitive guidance, the sector is looking around for comparable benchmarks and hints of which way the wind is blowing. Eyes have turned north to Scotland where, as most of you will be aware that, the Scottish charities' regulator has already reviewed 11 schools and found 4 of them falling short of their public benefit test. In each case, the schools falling short have been told that their bursary provision is inadequate. Do the Scottish decisions set a precedent for English schools? Strictly, no: first, because the law is different in Scotland, and second because the Charity Commission has been clear that each school must be considered on its own merits. But many have expressed the view that, notwithstanding the clear differences in law between England and Scotland, it would be a strange situation where a school passes the test on one side of the border and fails it on the other.

And in the last couple of weeks, we have had a fascinating insight into current Commission thinking on bursary thresholds. Those of you who saw the Commission's draft school trustee report for the mythical Lintott School will have noted that the School offered bursaries to a value exceeding 5% of the school's annual gross fee income - which many observers of the Scottish reviews have noted as the apparent threshold for passing or failing the Scottish test. Indeed, I suspect many of you would have been envious of a school which, without any large endowment:

• had 16% of its pupil roll on bursaries;
• devoted 6% of its annual spend to state school partnerships;
• limited its annual fee increase to CPI;
• and was not worried about a negative balance on its free reserves due to, and I quote, "the strength of its balance sheet, the stable cash flow from full student rolls, the ongoing popularity of our school and the available banking facility that can be called upon if need arises".

I almost expected to see the annual report signed by a governor going under the name of Monsieur Pangloss. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Lintott School report has already been amended to remove all threshold indicators - but I can't help feeling that we have had a glimpse of the Charity Commission's cards.

Returning to the real world. Why, you may ask, must I meet both tests for charitable status? Surely if my school meets the real public benefit test, why should I bother with the Charity Commission's more onerous social benefit standard? The answer is both legal and pragmatic:

• From a legal perspective, all charities are required to "have regard" to the Charity Commission's guidance. Of course, this doesn't mean that you have to agree with it or follow it, but your governors would be failing in their duties if they did not pay regard to the guidance.
• In addition, when your governors are preparing their annual report to the Charity Commission, they will also have to comply with specific reporting requirements, which are legally binding and which are designed to highlight a school's social benefit - as the Lintott example makes abundantly clear.
• More significantly, however, the Charity Commission is reviewing schools against the Commission's own standards - and if you fail to measure up to their tests, you risk becoming a test case.

What practical advice can I offer? 

• First, make sure you are familiar with your school's founding objects, including any amendments that may have been made. The Charity Commission is quite clear that any activity you carry on which you want to include as part of your social benefit has to be directly linked to your school's objects. In other words, if you have links with overseas schools, make sure that your objects are generic enough to encompass this. If not, consider approaching the Charity Commission to gain approval to change them.
• At the same time, carry out your own "social benefit audit" within your school to list all the activities that go on and which are potentially eligible for inclusion. Bursaries and playing fields are a start - but what about other links with local schools, children and communities? Do you train and induct teachers? Do your teachers help out, via formal or informal arrangements, at local schools? Do you provide teaching materials via your intranet accessible to teachers and children at other schools? Do you act as an examination centre for external candidates, such as home educated children?
• Don't assume, however, that all activities benefitting your local community, however philanthropic, will be relevant. The Commission's emphasis on a direct link between your school's objects and the activities in question will inevitably reduce the number of activities that meet the test. As a general rule, activities directly benefitting local children are likely to be highly relevant, whereas letting a local adult sports club or theatre group use your facilities may be less so. So either consider approaching the Commission to gain approval to widen your objects appropriately or consider refocusing on core child-centred activities. This may see some schools moving to a model where they charge full market rates to adult groups in order to subsidise more activities which are directly related the school's objects.
• Make sure your governors have social benefit firmly on their agenda for future meetings, and that any decisions taken which may impact your school's quantum of social benefit are fully minuted and properly considered. In many cases, there will be no right or wrong decision, so long as you have considered all the right factors. For example, a school which is considering moving to means tested scholarships may decide that music scholarships must be non-means tested if the school is to ensure that its reputation and calibre as a centre of musical excellence be preserved. This is not a decision that the Charity Commission should have a say in - but make sure your reasoning is minuted.
• Appoint one governor with responsibility to read all the Commission's statutory guidance and advise his or her fellow governors about its relevance to the school.
• Don't be prevented from reporting on your school's social benefit by slavish adherence to the Commission's guidance. For example, we continue to advise that schools should report on all benefits, direct and indirect, so as to provide a properly rounded picture of the impact the school has on its pupils, its local community and society in general. This will include the fact that your school educates so many pupils each year with no claim on the State for the State-funded place at a maintained school the pupils would otherwise take up. This is despite the Commission's intransigence on the question of whether this indirect benefit is relevant or not. In one of the more sophistic sections of the sector guidance, the Commission appears to recognise that the relief of public expenditure might be relevant to assessing the benefit provided by a school - but then immediately disregards it for the purposes of quantifying a school's social benefit.
• Finally, don't be shy about declaring your charitable heritage publicly. There is a pernicious school of thought that schools are not "real" charities. This is not true. Schools may not have been adept at using the politically correct language adopted by the Charity Commission: "public benefit", "material opportunities to benefit", "persons in poverty"; but this does not undermine the case for charitable status. A school's founding mission, its ethos and approach to education, and its motivation - whether to produce exceptionally gifted scholars, sportsmen and women or well-rounded individuals - all attest to the school's charitable intent and purpose of advancing education.

Matthew Burgess is ISC's Deputy Chief Executive.

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Meeting the Charity Test and Demonstrating Public Benefit in Scotland

Judith Sischy reports on developments in Scotland

The question of independent schools and charitable status is still the source of fierce, emotive debate that touches on issues that are political, legal, educational, financial and philosophical, issues that are crucial to our well-being as a sector.

Scotland has had separate legislation on charity law only since 2005 with the passing of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act, not to be confused with the Charities Act 2006 which applies to charities in England and Wales. Under both Acts, the advancement of education remains a charitable purpose. The change in both jurisdictions is that we are now asked explicitly to demonstrate our public benefit. Indeed, in Scotland, there is a statutory requirement to demonstrate that we provide public benefit - an intention to do so not being sufficient - as we have discovered in the recent reviews carried out by Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR).

When the 2005 Act came into force, all existing charities were automatically transferred to the Scottish Charity Register, on the understanding that they would in due course be reviewed to establish whether they met new the charity test and could remain on the Register. This process is known as the Rolling Review and the first seven pilot reviews in 2006/07 included one independent school, The High School of Dundee. The review was a complex exercise for both OSCR and the school, as evidenced in the report that was published in July 2007. The High School of Dundee passed the charity test with a clean bill of health and will not be reviewed for a further 7 to10 years.

Towards the end of 2007, OSCR announced that it was undertaking a further pilot, this time of 30 charities across a wide spectrum of organisations. 10 independent schools were included, covering boarding schools, large city day schools, small schools, faith schools and special schools. The results were announced in October 2008 - six of the schools passed the charity test and four schools were issued with a three step Direction. They were given three months to indicate to OSCR whether they intended to comply with the Direction and all have indicated that they intend to do so. They now have a further nine months, until the end of October 2009, to produce a plan to show how they will increase access arrangements, or produce some other strategy, to ensure that they will be able to meet the public benefit requirement of the charity test. They then have until October 2011, three years from the date of Direction, to show the regulator that they can meet the objectives of their plan.

The four schools that have been given Directions include a large city day school, two mainly boarding schools and a school which is predominantly day but has a number of boarders. In all cases, OSCR recognised the benefit that the schools provided from the wide range of activities undertaken. Those activities had to be related to their charitable purpose, namely the advancement of education, in order to count for the charity test. None of the schools had difficulties with regard to private benefit or disbenefit to the public, both of which have to be taken into account in terms of the legislation.

The problem arose because of the requirement in the Act to take into account "whether any condition on obtaining  the benefit (including any charge or fee) is unduly restrictive". In the case of four of the schools, OSCR felt that public benefit was not provided due to there being insufficient mitigation of restrictive conditions, taking into account their size and/or level of fees. A key factor in OSCR's decisions was the availability of means-tested access. What action did the schools take to make the education that they provided accessible to those who could not afford the fees? "Forms of facilitated access which are clearly linked to  the financial situation of potential beneficiaries (for instance through means-testing) are likely to have the greatest impact in assessing undue restrictions". (OSCR Report)Under the 2005 Act, if a school were removed from the Scottish Charity Register it would continue to be under a duty to apply its assets in accordance with the purposes set out in its entry in the Register immediately before its removal, i.e. for the advancement of education. Scots law recognises trusts for public purposes that are not charities. Therefore circumstances could arise in Scotland whereby the Trustees of a school that fails the charity test could decide to continue to hold the assets for educational purposes and run the school as before - provided that its charitable assets were properly protected and applied for its pre-removal purposes- but without the benefits of being a charity. At this point in time, such a situation remains hypothetical and we are continuing to focus our energies on our retaining our long-standing charitable status.

From the outset, the SCIS has worked in close cooperation with the regulator in order to keep in touch and provide advice on the process that takes place when the schools come to be reviewed. Although it is good news that 7 out of 11 schools have passed the charity test, the sector was disappointed that 4 of the schools did not pass first time round. During the 12 months to October 2009, OSCR will engage in dialogue with the four schools on the plans that they intend to submit. At the same time, SCIS will continue its dialogue with OSCR on issues that are generic to the sector, including some of the more difficult issues that arise out of the reviews. There is still much to unfold.

In light of the fact that we now have two separate jurisdictions, are the issues different for schools north and south of the border? It is too soon to be able to give a definitive answer to that question, although our respective regulators, the Charity Commission in England and the Office of the Scottish Charity Register (OSCR) in Scotland, appear to be working on similar principles. They certainly work closely together and it would seem strange for there to be fundamental differences in the way in which public benefit is considered for comparable schools north and south of the border. However the two laws are different, and we will only find out what happens in practice when the charity commission reports on the first five schools test cases in England.

Judith Sischy is the Director of the Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS).

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ISC Job Zone: The Free Recruitment Service

Rosie Keeling reports on the new Job Zone features on the ISC website.

The Job Zone receives around 30,000 page views every month and is the second most popular section accessed through the ISC homepage, making it a great opportunity for ISC schools to advertise all types of job vacancies free of charge.

When they visit the Job Zone, job seekers are instantly able to refine their search by selecting various options. They are then presented with a list of jobs matching their criteria, which can be clicked on for more information.

How to add your jobs to the Job Zone

Step 1 Logging in to the ISC Member Zone
ISC schools can add details of all their job vacancies through the Member Zone on the ISC website. All individuals wishing to access the Member Zone first need to register.

• To do this, simply go to www.isc.co.uk/MemberZone, complete the form under the heading ‘New User' and click on the ‘Register Now' button at the end. You will then be emailed your personal login details.
• To log in, return to www.isc.co.uk/MemberZone_WelcometotheMemberZone.htm and complete the login fields with your email and password. Forgetting them needn't be a worry - just click on ‘Forgotten password? Click here' and you will be emailed a reminder. You also have the option of ticking a ‘Remember me' box when logging in so that you don't need to type you email and password next time you visit.
• To change your password click the yellow ‘Change Login' button in the left hand navigation when logged in.

Step 2 Adding your jobs to the Job Administration section of the Member Zone
When logged into the Member Zone you can add details of all the job vacancies at your school. Select ‘Job Administration' in the left hand navigation and then ‘Add New Job.' (See Figure 1) Once you have completed all the fields click on the submit button and your job will appear immediately in the Job Zone, which is accessible by all.

If you would prefer the job not to appear, simply tick ‘Hide Job?' It will then remain hidden until you deselect hide. When adding a job you must specify the date on which you wish the job to go live; selecting the date of the day on which you are adding the job vacancy, will enable the details to go live immediately.

The Job Administration area only allows you to see and edit job vacancies at your school.

Step 3 Editing your job vacancies
Once you have added a job you can edit it at any time by clicking on ‘Edit Live Jobs'. When you add a job you select the date on which the advert should be removed from the Job Zone, after which date the job moves from ‘Edit Live Jobs' to ‘List/Repost Expired Jobs' in the Member Zone's Job Administration area. This means that you can re-post a job at a later date if necessary, without having to complete all of the details again.

Who do I ask if I need help?
If you have any questions relating to the Member Zone, adding jobs or open days, email website@isc.co.uk

Rosie Keeling is ISC's Digital Content Manager

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British Schools Abroad

International education is already a huge industry. Fiona Rogers looks at its remarkable growth in recent years.

There are roughly 628,000 students being educated in the 2,600 independent schools in the UK, but this figure only represents about half of the total number of students studying in a British independent school. The other 700,000+ students are studying in British International Schools around the world. There are currently more than 2,100 schools worldwide teaching elements of the National Curriculum for England and Wales, and more than 1,800 of these schools designate their national orientation as ‘British'.1

There are currently more than 5,000 English-medium international schools in operation around the world (British International Schools, American International Schools, International Schools, etc.) and new ones are opening each month. The market worth of the industry is estimated at more than £11 billion. Even the most conservative growth figures project that, by 2020, there will be more than 10,000 English-medium international schools, educating more than four million pupils of all nationalities. If these figures are accurate, the teaching workforce for these schools will need to grow by at least 180,000.2

Looking specifically at British schools abroad, this growth is partly due to the fact that British education, at both the school and university level, has a worldwide reputation for quality. The fame and academic excellence of well-known educational institutions in the UK has contributed to this reputation. Parents around the world also recognise that an education in English opens doors for children both in terms of higher education and global professions. A British education is highly transferrable, allowing children to move easily between British schools in various countries as needed, and the internationally-recognised qualifications facilitate progression to university in the UK or elsewhere in the world. These factors contribute to the growing popularity of British schools abroad.

Some students in British International Schools are the children of expats, often from families where the parents' work requires relocation or frequent travel. But it is no longer the case that these schools cater exclusively, or even primarily, for British families living abroad. In an increasingly globallymobile society, British International Schools are serving families of all nationalities. Many of the larger schools will have 70 or 80 different nationalities represented among the student body, often including a high percentage of local children. These international student bodies bring associated challenges, such as a significant proportion of children with English as an Additional Language, or shifting group/ classroom dynamics owing to transient pupils. However, they also provide students with the invaluable opportunity to live and learn in a genuinely international community.

British International Schools around the world vary widely in terms of size, and age-range, and particularly management/ ownership structures (some are founded as companies, others as charities; some are owned by individuals, others by groups of parents and teachers). The nomenclature also varies. A school teaching the British curriculum may not necessarily call itself a "British School", preferring to use the term "International School" to reflect its cosmopolitan student body. Equally, schools that call themselves a "British School" may teach the local curriculum along with elements of the English curriculum to create a bi-lingual school.

British education outside the UK is exclusively in private hands; the British Government does not support schools abroad (with the exception of a handful of schools for the armed forces). The British Government has recently announced plans to inspect British schools abroad from September 2009, but for the time being the Government plays no part in monitoring these schools, and as a result the quality of education offered in these institutions can, unfortunately, sometimes be inconsistent. There are, however, many high-quality British schools abroad. Schools that are accredited by COBIS, for example, must first undergo an inspection by the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI). COBIS was founded as COBISEC (the Council of British Independent Schools in the European Communities) in 1981 with a handful of British schools in Europe. In the past two years, COBIS has changed its name to the Council of British International Schools to reflect an increasingly global membership, and now has member and affiliate schools in more than 35 countries around the world. In 2008 COBIS became a constituent member association of ISC.

The international schools industry is flourishing globally, with particularly pronounced growth in Asia. There are also an increasing number of independent schools in the UK exploring the possibility of opening branches abroad (daughter schools). Haileybury Almaty in Kazakhstan is one of the most recent daughter schools to open. Since its launch in September 2008, the pupil numbers have risen to nearly 450. This is perhaps unsurprising, since British International Schools are frequently over-subscribed. Research conducted in early 2008 showed that 55% of COBIS schools were planning building or expansion work in order to accommodate an increasing demand for places.

In the current economic climate, some schools are being more cautious with plans for growth, but recent COBIS research shows that the majority of responding schools, based on current evidence, are expecting enrolment for September 2009 to be comparable - or even slightly higher - than September 2008.

There are regional differences for British International Schools from country to country. The curriculum, for example, is adapted for an international setting and often tailored to allow children to learn about the culture in which they are living. However, when COBIS asked schools to identify what constituted the key characteristics of a ‘British School' and why parents choose these schools, the answers were remarkably consistent:

• English language
• Uniform
• Good communication between children and staff
• Discipline/behaviour management
• High standards/high academic expectations
• Welcoming environment and happy children
• ‘British values' (tolerance, equality, respect, concern for the world, democracy, fair play)
• Broad extra-curricular programme
• Interest in the whole person/educating the whole child/
• personal development/social development
• British celebrations/traditions
• Pastoral welfare
• Display of students' work in classrooms and corridors
• Open-minded, hands-on experience in the classroom
• Punctuality
• Commitment to teach, learn and assess in a variety of ways

These elements may seem unremarkable to schools in the UK, but with so much media energy spent focusing on what is wrong with British education, perhaps taking the time to reflect on some of the positive elements of British schooling that are valued by parents around the world is no bad thing.

Fiona Rogers is General Secretary of the Council of British International Schools (COBIS).

Footnotes
1. Figures courtesy of ISC Research Ltd (not affiliated with the Independent Schools Council)
2. Figures courtesy of ISC Research Ltd (not affiliated with the Independent Schools Council)

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The Duke of Edinburgh's Award

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award and Independent Schools - A contribution to public benefit? Louise Taylor investigates.

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award (DofE) is the world's leading achievement award for young people. Their mission is to inspire, guide and support young people in their self-development and recognise their achievements. Anyone aged between 14 and 24 can do a DofE programme at one of three progressive levels which, when successfully completed, lead to a Bronze, Silver or Gold Award. Louise Taylor reports.

DofE programmes are a great addition to school life as they equip young people with life skills to make a difference to them and their community. A balanced programme develops the whole person - mind, body and soul, in an environment of social interaction and team working.

"DofE programmes aim to build social, team and leadership skills. They are thoroughly worthwhile experiences which enable young people not only to acquire a range of skills, but to be personally challenged and stretched." Millfield School.

DofE programmes are currently offered by 83% of independent schools - but are all aware of the benefits for young people and the public benefit?

The benefits of DofE programmes
Duke of Edinburgh's Awards are prestigious and can be used to celebrate and recognise the activities that your students already enjoy. They recognise a young person's successful journey of self-discovery and development, and are taken into consideration by universities and employers. Independent research conducted by the United Learning Trust with major employers showed that a DofE Award  was the first thing they looked for on a CV after formal academic qualifications.

DofE programmes help young people develop into fully rounded and responsible individuals. Participants will see  new talents blossom, personal skills including time management, problem solving and leadership develop and also build their fitness and initiative. There are also many benefits for school, including:

• Presentation events, unusual expeditions and community action can be used to demonstrate the values the school instils in its students.
• The ability to deliver internationally recognised programmes has a high status with parents and employers.
• A framework in which to deliver a wide range of extracurricular activities.
• A tool to encourage those students with low self-esteem.
• A method to encourage all students to do activities to improve their life skills.

• 93% felt that by including their Award on an application form it would help to secure employment or places at preferred colleges.
• 58% believed that having achieved an Award had helped them in their job/career - the most helpful section was Volunteering.
• 64% believed that having an Award helped them gain their most recent/current job.

Public benefit and the DofE
Through the Volunteering section, DofE participants' voluntary work is worth over £13.5m to local communities across the UK each year, giving identifiable  and measurable benefit to the public. This gives a chance for local residents to engage with your school positively. 61% of Gold Award holders continue with volunteering work after they have completed their programmes.

Although the Charity Commission has yet to report, I would hope at this stage that running DofE programmes should, at the very least, strengthen the case of an independent school when its charitable status is being scrutinised by the Charity Commission.

Julian Blake, Solicitor with Bates, Wells and Braithwaite, believes the DofE can truly help independent schools: "There is no new legal definition of ‘public benefit' so everything that is happening is within current law. The more Independent Schools can extend what they offer, the stronger their position will be with the Charity Commission; DofE programmes are one of a range of opportunities. The DofE is an easy means of extending public benefit, in that it is already set up, it is easy to administer and being recognised on a broad front should make links with young people in the community relatively straightforward to make."

If you are not already running DofE programmes in your school and taking advantage of these benefits, then why not consider starting it?

Running DofE programmes in your school
All DofE centres and groups need committed Leaders and volunteers in order to help young people complete their DofE programmes and achieve a Duke of Edinburgh's Award. Staff will need to spend time supporting the activities young people do, but it need not be onerous. Running DofE programmes also supports the delivery of the International Baccalaureate, as well as being transferable for students who started or want to complete their programme overseas.

"Doing my DofE has been a great experience, making  me set myself targets to achieve - it's a really fun way to spend your time!" Rebecca, DofE participant, Felsted School.

"The varied and flexible nature of DofE programmes appeals to a wide range of boys and girls, offering excellent opportunities for personal development at all levels. Pupils who have followed the programme right through can be identified by their range of skills, social awareness and selfconfidence." Ian Davies, Headmaster, Brentwood School and Independent Schools Advisor to the DofE.

For more information please visit our website: www.DofE.org

Louise Taylor is Head of Marketing for The Duke of Edinburgh's Award.

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Exam Trends

Rudolf Eliott Lockhart looks at trends in exam results in England between 2002 and 2008.1

When pupils received their exam results last summer the picture was, once again, of those at ISC schools performing better than ever. At A-level 50.1% of entries were awarded an A grade while at GCSE 58.4% of entries were awarded either an A* or an A. Figures for the rest of England (excluding results for ISC pupils) showed 21.7% achieving an A at A-level and 19.6% awarded an A* or A at GCSE. 33,949 ISC pupils sat A-levels, making up 10.2% of all A-level pupils; they took 14.8% of all Alevels sat. 41,631 ISC pupils sat GCSEs, making up 6.4% of all GCSE pupils; they took 6.5% of all GCSEs sat. These figures give a snapshot of exam success that is now a familiar part of the summer, but in order to understand the underlying changes that are taking place it is necessary to look at results over a number of years. This article analyses data drawn from all A-level and GCSE results in England over the last seven years and seeks both to highlight the changing trends within exam results and to explain where these are different within the independent sector from the maintained sector.2

GCSE
The overall picture of entries from ISC pupils from 2002 to 2008 has three main elements. First, the number of entries rose steadily from 327,461 in 2002 to a peak in 2006 at 371,103, before numbers fell sharply in 2007 and 2008 to 327,696 entries last summer.

The decline in entries over the last two years is not a result of a fall in pupil numbers at ISC schools, indeed, 2007 and 2008 saw more pupils than ever taking GCSEs, rather, the decline is the result of pupils taking fewer GCSEs each. Whereas between 2002 and 2006 the average ISC pupil entered 8.95 GCSEs, in 2007 this figure fell to 8.21 and in 2008 to 7.85. Among the rest of English schools the total number of entries rose slightly over the same period with no decline in entries per pupil. Why then are ISC pupils taking fewer GCSEs than they used to?

The answer is provided by the increased popularity of the IGCSE. Since 2007 ISC has gathered data for the numbers of pupils sitting IGCSEs and this information shows a signifi cant increase in their popularity. In 2007, of the 396,317 entries in the UK for GCSE and IGCSE combined, 15,559 (3.9%) were for the IGCSE; in 2008 this had leaped to 39,786 (10.4%) out of 384,045.3 Moreover, in 2007 some 34.3% of ISC schools reporting results for pupils in year 11 had some pupils entering IGCSEs, a figure that rose to 45.6% in 2008. It seems clear that while the GCSE retains significant popularity within ISC schools, there is an increasing move towards the IGCSE.4

The second main feature of GCSE results in the period is the significant rise in results: despite a negligible net rise in entries in the period, there was a rise of 18.1% in the number of A*s and a 7.8% rise in the number of A grades; the average points score for a single GCSE entry rose from 47.78 to 49.65, i.e. it changed from being closer to a B grade to closer to an A grade.5 Among the rest of English schools the level of grades also awarded improved rapidly: the average points score rose from 37.40 to 39.54, so that the average GCSE grade for a non-ISC pupil is now slightly below a C grade. Between 2002 and 2008 the  gap in average points per entry between ISC pupils and those for the rest of England shrunk slightly from 10.38 to 10.11. This is due to a ceiling effect: it is harder for ISC pupils' results to improve when so many are already achieving the top grade; nonetheless this still means that an average ISC entry scores more than a grade and a half higher than the average from non-ISC entry.

The third element of the GCSE picture is the choice of subjects taken. Figure 2 shows the proportion of entries for each GCSE that came from ISC pupils and also the proportion of the A*s awarded that went to ISC pupils. The table is ordered with the subjects that had the highest proportion of ISC entries in 2008 at the top of the table. This table highlights the fact that science subjects, languages and classics are disproportionately bolstered by entries and results from ISC pupils while subjects like PE and design and technology are less likely to be taken by ISC pupils. The table also shows how ISC pupils outperform pupils at other schools in every subject. Taking GCSE geography as an example, whereas ISC schools provided 11.4% of all entries in the subject in 2008, these pupils achieved 33.9% of all of the A* grades, that is, over a third of the A* grades in GCSE Geography were gained by pupils at ISC schools.

Care needs to be taken with the data in figure 2. It shows that while ISC pupils were awarded nearly a third of A* grades in 2002, in 2008 they picked up just over a quarter of them. While this might look like a slip in standards, the reality is quite the opposite: the proportion of ISC entries achieving an A* grade rose from 23.4% to 27.6%, whereas among non-ISC entries it rose from 4.3% to 6.1%. This means that the gap between the percentage of ISC entries achieving an A* and non-ISC entries doing so rose from 19.1 percentage points to 21.5 percentage points between 2002 and 2008. Effectively, figure 2 is only able to show an improvement in the A* rate among non-ISC pupils relative to ISC pupils because their start point in 2002 was so much lower.

A-Level
Between 2002 and 2008 the picture is one of an increasing number of entries and of results improving at a rapid rate. In this period the number of entries by ISC pupils at A-level rose from 100,613 to 109,614 an increase of 8.9%. The number of A grades secured by these pupils rose by an impressive 32.4%, and the proportion of ISC candidates achieving 3 or more A grades increased from 23.5% to 31.1%.6 The average points score for an ISC A-level entry rose from 233.1 to 242.5, a rise that is the equivalent of almost a third of a grade, from something under a B grade to just over a B.7 The figures for non-ISC schools show a similar rise in both entries and A grades. The average points-per-entry rose from 199.7 (somewhere between a D and a C) to 214.7 (just over the value for a C grade). As with GCSEs there is something of a ceiling effect that explains why the average points per candidate rose by 9.4 points among ISC pupils and 15 points among non-ISC pupils: it is harder for ISC pupils' results to improve when so many are already achieving the top grade. A further similarity with the picture at GCSE level is the increase in popularity of alternative qualifications: in 2008 2.1% of ISC's year 13 exam candidates took the IB. With anecdotal evidence suggesting the IB is gaining popularity within the sector and other qualifications such as the Pre-U joining the scene, this picture is likely to get ever more complicated.

The use of points-per-entry is probably the most reliable indicator of exam success as it is not skewed by candidates taking unusual numbers of A-levels. In January, after DCSF's publication of 2008's revised A-level results there were some reports in the media that independent schools were being out-performed by grammar schools.8 These reports picked up on the fact that candidates at grammar schools achieved more points per candidate (966) than at independent schools (893) but failed to acknowledge that the same DCSF table from which they drew their figures clearly stated that grammar school pupils scored an average of 227 points per entry in comparison with an average of 237 for entries from the independent sector. This suggests that pupils at grammar schools get more points on average at A-level because they take more subjects, whereas pupils in the independent sector get better grades for each subject that they take. It's also worth noting that three A grades would net a candidate 810 points, so candidates from grammar schools and independent schools were both averaging points worth more than three A grades per candidate.

Figure 3 below shows the proportion of entries for each A-level that came from ISC pupils and also the proportion of the As awarded that went to ISC pupils. As with figure 2, the table is ordered with the subjects that had the highest proportion of ISC entries in 2008 at the top of the table. It is clear from this table that ISC schools play a disproportionate role in supporting the study of key subjects such as languages, economics, maths and science, whereas it is non-ISC pupils that are most likely to enter for A-levels in less traditional subjects such as law, sociology and media studies. Moreover, the table also shows how, as at GCSE, ISC pupils outperform pupils at other schools in every subject. Taking A-level economics as an example, whereas ISC schools provided 33.1% of all entries in the subject in 2008, these pupils achieved 48.3% of all of the A grades, that is, almost half of the A grades in A-level economics were gained by pupils at ISC schools.

As with figure 2 for GCSEs, the data in figure 3 needs to be handled with care. While it shows that at A-level the proportion of A grades awarded that went to ISC pupils fell from 30.5% in 2002 to 28.6% in 2008 this does not represent a slip in standards. The reality is that the gap in performance between ISC pupils and other pupils has grown. Between 2002 and 2008 the proportion of ISC entries achieving an A grade rose from 41.2% to 50.1%, whereas among non-ISC entries it rose from 16.7% to 21.7% meaning that the gap in performance has grown from 24.5 percentage points to 28.4 percentage points.

Languages
Perhaps the most disturbing trend in exam results over the past seven years has been the plummeting number of pupils taking courses in Modern Foreign Languages (MFL). In 2004 the study of a language to GCSE ceased to be a statutory requirement for students in maintained schools, this has resulted in a sharp fall in the number of language entries. The decline has been stark: there were almost 173,000 fewer language GCSEs taken in England in 2008 than there were in 2002, a shocking drop of 34.1%. Closer inspection reveals that this narrative of declining numbers, apparent from the national trend, was not replicated among ISC entries.

Figure 4 shows that while the number of entries for MFL was plummeting nationally, the number of entries at ISC schools actually rose by 6.4%, a sharp contrast to the decline among non-ISC entries at 38.1%. Consequently whereas in 2002 ISC entries amounted to 8.9% of all English entries for MFL GCSEs, by 2008 they made up 14.5%. To give these figures some context, ISC provided 6.6% of all GCSEs in 2002 and 6.5% in 2008. Thus while ISC schools have always played a crucial role in language teaching, their importance has become even greater in recent years.

Analysis of the MFL results of non-ISC pupils in this period is illuminating: the number of pupils gaining A*-C grades fell by 18.0% while the number awarded grades other than A*-C fell by 58.5%. This implies that while there has been an alarming collapse in the number of non-ISC pupils taking MFL GCSEs, this collapse was most pronounced among weaker candidates. Given that it is harder to achieve the top grades in languages than is normally the case in other subjects, and with schools in the maintained sector under such pressure to perform for league tables, would it be a surprise if schools chose to guide their weaker candidates away from the harder subjects such as MFL and towards softer ones?9 In the independent sector, where there is greater freedom from the tyranny of the league table, schools are able to encourage pupils to take MFL courses because they recognise the value that language skills will give pupils regardless of whether the courses might be harder and thus less attractive for the league table conscious.

Earlier this year figures from DCSF revealed for the first time the proportion of pupils achieving an A*-C grade in an MFL, alarmingly the figure for last summer was just 30.7%.10 Given that a disproportionately high number of these A*-C MFL grades were achieved by ISC pupils, this means that the proportion of non-ISC pupils who achieved at least one A*-C grade in a language was even lower than 30%.11 The decline of language learning at GCSE in the maintained sector has meant that between 2002 and 2008 ISC schools have become more important in producing the top achievers in MFL. This is partially reflected in the fact that the proportion of the MFL A* grades awarded that went to ISC pupils rose from 38.8% to 41.2%.

Surprisingly, the drop in numbers taking MFL GCSEs has not yet been translated to A-levels: numbers here have only slipped a little. Among ISC pupils MFL entries fell by 1.3% between 2002 and 2008 while among non-ISC pupils the decline was a little steeper at 6.6%. These figures are not good news but they do not show the same horror story that is taking place at GCSE level. What they do show, however, is the increasing significance of the contribution of ISC pupils to the national picture of language learning at A-level.

ISC pupils provide a greater proportion of exam entries at A-level than they do at GCSE. This figure has remained relatively stable throughout the period at 14.8%. Among languages, however, the proportion is much higher. Throughout the period around 33% of MFL entries have come from ISC pupils. This demonstrates how ISC pupils are much more likely to sit language A-levels than their counterparts in other schools. When it comes to results, the difference is even more pronounced: between 2002 and 2008 over 63% of all MFL A grades were awarded to ISC pupils. This is a greater dominance of the top grades than at GCSE, demonstrating that the independent sector's increasingly crucial role in language teaching as pupils become more specialised.

The overwhelming conclusion is that ISC schools play a disproportionate role in providing school-leavers with language qualifications. ISC schools help to prop up the study of languages in England: they are crucial for helping to provide universities with students for language courses with ISC pupils almost twice as likely to apply for a language course than other pupils.12 Having an education system that produces graduates with language skills is crucial to our national economy and ISC schools contribute significantly in helping to provide this public benefit. Moreover, a steady flow of language graduates is necessary to provide future language teachers, both for the independent and maintained sectors. Without independent schools, language teaching in this country would be in an even more parlous state than it is at present.

Science
Between 2002 and 2007 the share of all science GCSE entries that were from ISC pupils increased from 7.2% to 8.3%. During this period the proportion of ISC entries that were in science subjects remained fairly stable, averaging 24.7%, consistently above the 21.6% of entries from non-ISC pupils in science. Moreover, as figure 5 shows, when the type of science courses pupils actually took is analysed, it becomes clear that ISC pupils were less likely to take the less specialised Single Award Science course and were more likely to take individual GCSEs in physics, chemistry and biology. This confirms research from the Royal Society which noted that while 66% of independent schools offered the traditional separate courses in sciences, just 31% of maintained schools did.13 These more specialised separate science courses provide a better grounding for A-level study in individual science subjects.14

Moreover, within these subjects, it is clear that ISC pupils have dominated the top results with entries from ISC pupils between 2002 and 2007 averaging 49.24 points, almost two GCSE grades above the average of 37.34 for non-ISC entries.

Figure 5: Science entries broken down by course, 2002-2007

In 2008 the picture changed. First, pupils taking Double Award Science and Single Award Science were largely replaced by those taking Core and Additional Science. The intention was to make it possible to gain a broad overview of science from the Core GCSE and then either continue this broad approach through the Additional GCSE to gain two general Science GCSEs (much like the old Double Award Science) or supplement the Core GCSE with a stand alone GCSE in biology, physics or chemistry to allow a degree of more specialised study. The positive result was that in 2008 there were significantly more entries in biology, physics and chemistry. However, these increases were more than offset by the fact that the numbers taking Additional Science in 2008 were less than those who had taken Double Award Science in 2007 by a greater number than represented by the increase in uptake of biology, physics and chemistry. The net result was that while there had been a gentle rise in numbers taking science GCSEs between 2002 and 2007, the numbers of entries fell by 5.7% between 2007 and 2008, falling back below the 2002 numbers.

The decline in entries that the reorganisation of science GCSEs has led to would normally emphasise how critical the independent sector's continued role in providing scientifically literate school leavers was, yet between 2007 and 2008 there was a fall of 14.9% in the number of science entries among pupils from ISC schools, an even greater fall than in other schools. This is likely to be the result of the growing popularity of the IGCSE. Pinning down precise numbers for IGCSE entries is complicated by the fact that DCSF does not collect or publish these figures. Nonetheless, research undertaken for HMC indicates that between 2007 and 2008 entries for science IGCSEs increased approximately tenfold.15 HMC estimate that at least 6,030 pupils in their schools sat at least one science IGCSE in 2008, if this pattern was repeated across all ISC schools it might mean that something of the order of 11,000 pupils could have sat at least one science IGCSE last summer.

At A-level, entries from ISC pupils in science were disproportionately high throughout the period: approximately 19% of science entries came from ISC pupils, whereas around 15% of all entries did. Moreover, this 19% of entries secured around 33% of the A grades, underlining the crucial role that ISC schools play in producing scientifically literate school-leavers. This is a particularly important role given the general decline in science entries in the maintained sector: research from the Royal Society points to a drop of 13% in entries for chemistry A-level between 1991 and 2005 and of 35% in physics.

The picture for science results is complicated by the fact that science subjects at both GCSE and A-level appear to be ‘harder' than other subjects. Research from academics at Durham University found that candidates of similar ability find it much harder to achieve the top exam grades in science subjects: they found that on average science A-levels are a whole grade harder than subjects like drama and sociology and three quarters of a grade harder than English or business studies.16 The lure of ‘softer' subjects rather than the ‘hard' sciences helps to explain the decline in science entries. The Durham research also suggest that schools have a disincentive to promote take up of sciences as league tables treat all subjects as equal.

Maths
Trends in maths GCSE results are perhaps where the impact of the IGCSE is most striking. Between 2002 and 2005 the numbers of ISC pupils entering maths GCSE rose each year, peaking at 37,212; each year also saw a gradual improvement in results: 51.8% achieved A* or A grades in 2002, by 2005 that figure had risen to 53.0%. From 2006, however, entries from ISC pupils began to drop at an ever increasing rate, so that by 2008 there were just 22,838 entries, this represents a drop of 39% in three years. This trend is not in line with changes in entries from pupils at non-ISC schools where entries rose every year.

Almost all pupils sitting GCSEs at ISC schools take some form of maths course. Figure 6 shows that the proportion of ISC GCSE pupils taking maths GCSE has declined from 97% in 2002 to just 54% in 2008. This must mean that they have been taking some form of maths course other than GCSE, the vast majority of whom it can be assumed were sitting IGCSE maths. That this trend of a falling proportion of GCSE level pupils sitting maths GCSE is only found in the independent sector is no surprise as schools in the maintained sector do not take IGCSEs.

Moreover, analysis of GCSE results shows the proportion achieving A* or A grades falling from the 2005 peak to 46.6% in 2008. Again, this trend is not one that can be seen from the grades awarded to non-ISC pupils where the proportion awarded A* or A grades continued to grow, reaching 15.0% in 2008. Th e conclusion must be that not only are increasing numbers of ISC pupils turning away from maths GCSE to IGCSE, but also those who have left are drawn disproportionately from among the higher academic achievers.

Figures for maths and further maths A-levels demonstrate the important role that ISC schools perform in producing highly numerate school-leavers. ISC pupils are more likely to study maths at A-level. In 2008 14.8% of A-level entries came from pupils at ISC schools, but they accounted for 21.3% of maths entries and 31.6% of further maths entries.

ISC pupils also secured 31.4% of all the A grades awarded in maths and 36.6% of A grades in further maths. The greater emphasis on maths within the independent sector has significant implications for both pupils and the wider economy. Alison Wolf, Professor of Public Sector Management at King's College, London noted that even after allowing "for every other factor imaginable", those pupils who took A-level maths tended to earn around 10% more than those who did not.17 Research from Reform published last June emphasised how the changing nature of the UK economy has made the study of mathematics more important than ever, and yet the UK is in danger of slipping behind: while France produces 160 maths graduates per 1,000 people, the UK produces just 116.18 These figures help to highlight how, without the input of the independent sector, maths education in the UK would be severely impoverished and our economy would suffer accordingly.

Conclusion
Behind the familiar summer story of better than ever exam results there are more complex truths that the trends of the past seven years reveal. There has been a decline in the number of GCSE entries from ISC pupils, particularly in maths, due to a rise in popularity of the IGCSE. Media coverage suggests that there has been a further move towards IGCSEs this year: it will be interesting to see if this is reflected in a further decline in GCSE entries this summer.19 Pupils in the independent sector continue to sit, on average, more traditional subjects at both GCSE and A-level than those in the maintained sector and receive a disproportionately large share of the top grades. In some disciplines - most notably languages - it is the independent sector that is keeping the subjects afloat. Without the input of the independent sector the study of maths, science, languages and other subjects would be in serious trouble with severe consequences for the UK economy. The independent sector punches above its weight at exams, and this is to the benefit of not only the sector, but to the public beyond.

Key subjects, including individual sciences, maths, economics and languages, are disproportionately bolstered by entries from, and results from, ISC pupils.

• While the study of languages nationally has dropped since national curriculum changes, with GCSE entries down by more than a third over the last four years, entries from ISC schools for language GCSEs have grown in number over the same period. ISC pupils now take 4 out of every 10 A* grades awarded; at A-level this goes up to 6 out of every 10 A grades awarded.
• The number of entries from non-ISC schools for the separate science GCSEs of physics, chemistry and biology, as opposed to combined science GCSEs is 1 in 6, compared to more than 1 in 2 science GCSE entries from ISC schools. At Alevel, 1 in 7 entries is from an ISC pupil, yet they comprise 1 in 5 science entries and are awarded 1 in 3 science A grades.
• In maths the trend at ISC schools is to turn away from the GCSE and towards the IGCSE as a more rigorous exam. At A-level 1 in 5 maths entries is from an ISC pupil (further maths: 1 in 3) who achieve just under a third of all A grades (further maths: just over a third).

Footnotes
1. Many thanks to Adele Gilpin for helping to prepare the data used in this article.
2. The figures in this article are based on results from pupils in England. Figures published by DCSF for exam results cover England, rather than all of the UK, where possible I have focused on results in England in order to maintain comparability. Where figures are for the UK this is stated.
3. ISC figures.
4. The growth in popularity of the IGCSE is confi rmed by analysis of Edexcel and CIE data undertaken by HMC in January 2008
5. Using National Qualification Framework tariff where A*=58, A=52, B=46, C=40, D=34, E=28, F=22 & G=16.
6. The figures for candidates achieving 3 or more A grades are for ISC pupils across the whole UK.
7. Using QCA tariffs where A=270, B=240, C=210, D=180, E=150
8. For DCSF's figures see www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway DB/SFR/s000827/index.shtml. For an example of media coverage see www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_ style/education/article5519688.ece.
9. Coe, R., Searle, S., Barmby, P., Jones, K. & Higgins, S., Relative Difficulty of Examinations in Different Subjects (CEM Centre, Durham University, 2008); Titcombe, R., Unpublished research quoted by in de Waal, A., School  Improvement - or ‘The Equivalent' (Civitas, 2008)
10. www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000826/SFR02_2009_Final_Amended160109.pdf
11. In 2008 ISC pupils accounted for 6.5% of GCSE entries in England. Given that there was a higher number of entries per candidate at ISC schools than elsewhere this means that ISC must have provided less than 6.5% of GCSE candidates; nonetheless, they provided 19.2% of the A*-C grades awarded.
12. In 2007, the last year for which figures are available, 7.7% of applications to university from ISC pupils were for language related courses, this compares with 3.9% of all other applicants. Figures from www.ucas.ac.uk/about_us/stat_services/stats_online/; language course defined by JACS codes for ‘Linguistics, Classics & Related', ‘European Languages and Related' and ‘Non-European Languages and Related'.
13. Science and Mathematics Education, 14-19 (Royal Society, 2008) 14. Recent research from the CBI emphasised that individual science GCSEs provide a better preparation  for A-level science, open more doors for career prospects  and that helping more young people to fulfil their science  potential will ‘help Britain prosper', see:  www.cbi.org.uk/ndbs/press. nsf/0363c1f07c6ca12a8025671c00381cc7/ 45ffc17c462d50c38025749c002fe81c?OpenDocument.
15. Analysis of Edexcel and CIE data undertaken by HMC in January 2009
16. Coe et al. Relative Difficulty of Examinations
17. Wolf, A. (2002), Does education matter? Myths about education and economic growth, pp.35-36.
18. OECD StatsExtract, Dataset: Graduates by field of education. Quoted in www.reform.co.uk/ documents/The%20value%20of%20mathematics.pdf p7; For an alternative view on declining maths standards, 61% of members of the Institute of Directors believe that numeracy among new employees has declined over the last decade: press.iod.com/newsdetails.aspx?ref=342&m=2&mi=62&ms.
19. For example, www.guardian.co.uk/education/2009/mar/04/private-schools-gcses-manchester-grammarschool

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Educating Digital Natives - ICT and Schools

Mark S. Steed

Much has been made of the generation gap between teachers who have had to learn to use computers during the course of their careers [" digital immigrant" teachers] and their pupils who have grown up with these new technologies ["digital native" students]. Young people today are wired differently, communicate differently, and study and learn differently to their predecessors. However, it is misleading to think of all digital natives as being highly proficient in their use of new technologies. There is a huge disparity between the way in which "skilled" and "unskilled" digital natives go about studying. Mark Steed considers the significant implications this has for education, and how we prepare young people for the world of work in the early twenty-first century.

Digital natives
Whereas I protested to my parents [in vain!] that I could do my homework with either the radio or TV on, "digital natives" bring a whole new definition to multi-tasking - they think nothing of listening to iTunes, running MSN, Facebook, Hotmail, MySpace and YouTube simultaneously, whilst holding a number of conversations by text.1 It is no surprise that they have shorter attention spans, or that, because they have a more relaxed attitude to spelling and grammar when social networking, that this naturally spills over into their academic work. When faced with a new piece of technology - be it a mobile phone or a new computer program - they never read the instructions, they work out how to use it intuitively, and will ask a friend if they get stuck. They are accustomed to being entertained and to being involved. They inhabit a highly visual and creative world where they share photographs and videos daily and are able to publish their creations to their friends or to the world in a matter of minutes. Theirs is a multi-media world of pictures and video clips, of scrolling information bars and instant updates. They piece information together from snippets of information. Their idea of research is informed by Google and Wikipedia, rather than the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Creativity for them is dominated by linking, cutting, pasting and "mashups". They are a different animal.

Preparation for life
Many educationalists take the view that ICT is just the latest new technology that, like audio and video, can be used by teachers to impart the traditional curriculum.2 This is of course true, but to limit its importance to this sphere is to misunderstand the nature of this particular technology. The digital revolution is changing the world. Digital natives will live and work in a different world to the one which we now experience. They have already transformed their own world and we will be able to track their impact on society year by year as they become a greater proportion of the workforce.

Schools have a responsibility to prepare young people for the world that they are going to inhabit and not the one of the past. The ubiquitous ability to access information is changing both the patterns of work and the skills required by both higher education and the workplace. At a mouse click, we all can have access to more information than the human brain can hold. The value of factual knowledge is decreasing: the value of the higher skills of understanding and evaluation is going up. Clearly young people still need educating and Independent schools have established educational traditions and these will continue to be the core of what we do. However, it is likely that young people who combine traditional skills with high levels of digital literacy are going to be the leaders of society in years to come.

Marc Prensky, who coined the term "digital native", is probably right when he argued recently that it will be people who have "digital wisdom" that will shape the future.3 For him, the digitally wise will combine human understanding with digital enhancements. The digitally wise will be able "to find practical, creative, contextually appropriate and emotionally satisfying solutions to complicated human problems" in the future.

"Technology alone will not replace intuition, good judgment, problemsolving abilities, and a clear moral compass. But in an unimaginably complex future, the digitally unenhanced person, however wise, will not be able to access the tools of wisdom that will be available to even the least wise digitally enhanced human."

The concept of using digital enhancements is not so alien as it first appears. After all, we do not teach children to tell the time, we teach them to use a machine, which we strap to their wrist, that tells the time for them. Digital enhancements are already making a difference in many areas of business life. These tools already enhance memory, they provide up to the minute information, they allow levels of analysis incapable by the human brain. Just as the cheat who uses his phone to access the internet will win the pub quiz, so the skilled person who uses digital enhancements will make better decisions and judgements.

Digital Natives' Patterns of Research
Digital Natives' Patterns of Research is a title of which Unskilled Digital Native Behaviour and Skilled Digital Native Behaviour are sub-sections. The ability to research effectively is one of the keys to equipping young people for the future. When we analyse how digital natives go about research, there is a huge disparity between those young people who have highly developed digital skills and those who do not.

Unskilled Digital Native behaviour
Google is the first port of call of unskilled digital natives  - and there is evidence that reliance on this is increasing.4 Anecdotal evidence from schools around the country testifies to the indiscriminate and uncritical harvesting of information. Many young people do not seem to be able to discern the value or relevance of a particular piece of information that they find on the Internet. Furthermore, they have a fundamentally different view of what is original work. Plagiarism is on the rise and we are in danger of a "cut and paste" culture permeating our schools. These two phenomena pose an important challenge for schools - indeed for wider society.5

Skilled Digital Native behaviour
Despite the tendency of many young people to rely on Google as the research tool of choice, there are a number of encouraging and positive aspects about the way in which skilled digital natives research. Studies have shown that skilled digital natives go through a three stage process which in many ways is very similar to the way in which many non digital natives read a newspaper.6 We scan the headlines to get an overview of the issues; read in detail any article which catches our eye or in which we are interested; and, if we feel strongly about what is being discussed, we may send a letter to the editor. What is different is that digital natives do it all the time, not only when catching up on what is going on in the world, but also when reading, studying and researching. Researchers have termed the stages of this process, "Grazing", taking a "Deep Dive" and a feedback loop.7

Because the new technologies have enormous processing power and have simpler and faster search facilities, skilled digital natives are able to find relevant information much more quickly than in the past. A skilled digital native using the ‘find' function on an online electronic article or ebook, will find a relevant piece of information considerably faster than using traditional research methods - even if one does not take into account the time it would have taken physically to go to the library. In the context of Google's mission "to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful" and their recent agreement with authors and publishers, this trend towards electronic research is set to continue.8 University libraries and ‘adult' research behaviour are being transformed by this phenomenon.9

Relatively recent innovations, such as syndication technologies [e.g. RSS feeds] and recommendation systems [e.g. Digg.com] allow digital natives to be informed of new information in which they are interested the moment that it is published on the Internet. Skilled digital natives thus have at their disposal quick and easy access to relevant information. The thing that is most remarkable about digital natives is that it is much more common for them to engage with the material for which they are searching - they routinely send links to friends, embed videos on their Facebook site, comment on blogs and so on, all of which enhances their ability to find information relevant to them.

Digital Literacy
As educators, we need to ensure that our digital natives have the skills both to cope with the changing world and to protect themselves in cyberspace. Ironically, many of the key skills that young people need to acquire to be able to navigate the internet effectively don't entail using a computer. Many digital natives lack or do not apply the basic traditional study skills of using indexes, evaluating the relevance, accuracy or bias of a source, writing a précis, or citing a text when working online. These are the core skills that are taught in subjects throughout the curriculum. In addition, we need to incorporate a programme of "digital literacy" into our curriculum that combines these traditional skills with the new methods of research made possible by searching digitally.

The most important skill that young people need to learn in school is how to engage with and to think critically about the material that they find when researching on the internet. They need to be helped to resist the temptation to cut and paste the first article thrown up by Google. Digital literacy thus is best taught by teachers who have expertise in both traditional and modern research methods and can incorporate these into the tasks that they set young people.

In our schools we are dealing with some highly sophisticated, who in most cases are bilingual by the sixth form, being fluent in both "txtspeak" and the Queen's English. Every now and then the two worlds collide, but, on the whole, skilled digital natives are able to distinguish between the requirements of an English essay and txting their friends. Schools need to continue the battle to ensure that young people understand the linguistic demands of the world of work and of wider society.

The other important area of digital literacy is helping young people to understand and avoid the risks that face them in cyberspace. Digital natives have a totally different attitude to privacy than all previous generations. When digital natives meet new people on social networking sites, for example, they routinely disclose their life story in a single mouse click, disgorging enormous amounts of personal information and photographs to relative strangers. What is more, they do it in a digital format that is easy to store, share and publish. This is a real concern. Digital natives may be computer savvy, but at times they are naïve about the dangers of the adult world. A digital literacy programme should give young people the skills to navigate the digital landscape and to protect their personal information.

Schools
The key to meeting the challenge of educating digital natives is a dedicated teaching staff who not only have expert knowledge of their own subjects, but who themselves combine both traditional skills with a high level of "digital literacy". We must lead by example. If we are going to have any credibility, teachers need to have a presence in cyberspace and to have mastered these skills ourselves. What is more there is great scope here for teachers and pupils to work together collaboratively. Digital natives and their digital immigrant teachers need to open up an effective dialogue to share their collective expertise and experience.

Mark S. Steed is the Principal of Berkhamsted School and chairs the ISC Information, Communications and Technologies (ICT) Strategy Group.

Footnotes
1. Capgemini, ‘How is the Younger Generation Reshaping the Telecom and Media Landscape', in Telecom & Media Insights 16 (April 2007)
2. For example, Seldon, A., Interview on the BBC Today Programme, Friday 27th February, 2009, archived at http:// news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_7914000/7914405.stm
3. Prensky, M., ‘Homo Sapiens Digital: From digital immigrants and digital natives to digital wisdom' in Innovate - Journal of Online Education 5.3 (February/March 2009)
4. Dutton, W.H. and Helsper, E., Oxford Internet Survey 2007 Report: The Internet in Britain (Oxford, 2007) p67
5. Carr, N., ‘Is Google making us Stupid?' in The Atlantic (July/August 2008)
6. Palfrey, J. and Gasser, U., Born Digital: Understanding the first generation of digital natives (2008) pp240-44
7. See Palfrey and Gasser, Born Digital, 241
8. The future of Google Book Search, see
http://books.google.com/googlebooks/agreement/
9. Student Information-Seeking Behaviour in Context: Key findings from CIBER log studies (UCL, 2007)

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University Admissions 2008 - Celebrating the Success

Larner Bernard

2008 proved to be another successful year for ISC school pupils in terms of university admissions. No less than 71% of applicants were accepted on degree courses, compared with 21% nationally1, with acceptance at the Russell Group of universities standing at 65%.

This is clearly something to be celebrated, as it is a strong indication that the quality of education provided in ISC  schools prepares students well for degree courses which generally lead to successful careers on above average salaries.

The table below shows the acceptance rate by Joint Academic Coding Systems (JACS) subject area.

• Subject areas with high acceptance rates are Technologies (90%), Physical Sciences (87%) and Engineering (86%).
• Medicine & Dentistry and Non-European Languages and Related subjects have the lowest acceptance rates of 34% and 58% respectively, reflecting the competitive nature of these courses.
• It is well known that UK examination performance in MFL (Modern Foreign Languages) and STEM (Science Technology and Maths) subjects are weighted heavily towards the independent sector and this is borne out by differences in comparative acceptance rates between ISC schools and the National data in Table 1.

Russell Group

• Of the Russell group universities, Birmingham University has the highest acceptance rate, followed closely by Sheffield, Glasgow and Newcastle.
• This contrasts with LSE, Oxford and Cambridge Universities which are at the other end of the scale.
• Edinburgh rejection rates remain high at 57%, as at Bristol 54% - this compares with rates of 53% and 40%, respectively, in 20072.

Oxford & Cambridge Offers
ISC performance in terms of university acceptance at Oxbridge was stellar in 2008. The overall ISC acceptance rate was 34.4%, (compared to 23% nationally), marginally up on 2007 (33.7%). Additionally, the total number of pupils applying to Oxbridge increased to 3,433 (compared to 2,998 in 2007) and the number of pupils accepted increased by 17.2%. It was notable that the proportion of unconditional offers made increased to just over half, compared to just 12% the year before. This could be down to a general change of policy at both universities but there is no public data available to substantiate whether this increase in unconditional offers also applied to the maintained sector.

Such excellent results often give rise to criticisms of elitism and would seem to fly in the face of government targets to widen participation in higher education. The participation rate is defined as "the proportion of a particular group in higher education compared with the proportion in the general population"3. Data from the Pubic Accounts Committee would seem to indicate that between 2002 and 2003 the participation rate of students from lower economic groups rose by just 1.5 percentage points to 19% despite many initiatives and millions of pounds being spent. For example, Oxford spends over £1.8 million on outreach activities, and Cambridge spends some £3 million on activities aimed at widening participation and access4.

ISC has as one of its objectives the widening of education opportunities, and ISC research shows that our schools have played their role in widening provision. Our research data indicates that between 2006 and 2008 the number of pupils in ISC schools benefitting from means tested bursaries increased from a minimum of 25,790 to 28,962, a arise of 12.2%. In 2008, the total termly value of such bursaries was in excess of £55mn. If one makes the not unfair assumption that those children whose parents are on lower incomes and receive assistance would tend to be from lower socio economic groups, then it is clear  that independent schools are playing a role in widening participation. Furthermore, given that ISC university acceptance rates continue to rise, then all other things being equal, more students from lower socio-economic groups are making the grade and studying at prestigious higher education institutions.

The Universities Secretary, John Denham, speaking at the annual conference of Universities UK in September 2008, stated that universities should aim to widen participation and argued strongly that it would not lead to a fall in standards. Nevertheless there is some suspicion that perhaps pupils from independent schools are not being rejected on the basis of merit but because of their school type. Universities have strongly denied this. But there is anecdotal evidence from head teachers in ISC schools that strong candidates may be denied an offer for seemingly non-transparent reasons. Indeed, recent revelations concerning Durham's practice of marking down high achieving applicants whose predicted A level results reflect the average attainment for their school would seem to bear this out. The Schwartz Review into university admissions published in 2003 set as its overriding objective "to reinforce public confidence in the fairness and transparency of admissions arrangements." Post Qualification Admissions should deliver this, but in the meantime it is absolutely essential for all pupils and schools that the criteria for admissions are clear and unbiased to ensure that the best students are admitted. To do otherwise would be to risk the excellent reputation of the UK's Higher Education institutions.

UCAS Points
The 2008 data showed some interesting trends, the highlights of which are summarised below:-

• In terms of A level offers, Law offers have the highest point score requirement (3As) in terms of both median and mode (360 points).
• The data further shows that that Medicine & Dentistry, Mathematics & Computer Science and Linguistics/ Classics degree offers are also highly demanding at 340 points (typically 2 As and a B). Interestingly for students taking the International Baccalaureate (IB) the degree subject areas with the highest points offer were Non-European Languages at 39 points and Medicine and Dentistry - 38 points. The equivalent subject areas for A level students are Law and Medicine and Dentistry.

Conclusion
Despite perceived political interference in the admissions process, ISC schools continue to achieve excellent results in preparing their students for university entrance. Having compared rejection rates by institution for ISC schools and all UK schools, it would appear that where acceptance rates are low this is down to the competitive nature of the courses in question, such as medicine, and not due to any particular bias. Some institutions do have a much higher rejection rate than others e.g. LSE, and perhaps further investigation is warranted to establish whether there appears to be bias in some institutions' admissions' processes. This article does not attempt to answer this question, but does offer the suggestion that where a Russell Group university is competing with international world class institutions; there might be an unintentional bias towards recruiting more overseas students to the disadvantage of home students because of the funding implications. In fact this argument was used by the Director General of the Russell Group - Dr Wendy Piatt - in the group's response to the HEPI report5 in April 2008. Here the argument was that the UK does not invest as much in its universities compared to other OECD countries and this means that it is more lucrative for our top universities to recruit more students from overseas.

The Government quite laudably has an objective to increase participation in university education from lower socio-economic groups. The best way to achieve this is to improve the opportunity such students have of achieving good examination results which give them a passport into good universities. It has been shown that there is almost no difference between the participations rates of poor and rich students with the same ‘A' Level results6. ISC schools' increased bursary provision has increased opportunities for children of parents on lower incomes to attend independent schools. ISC university acceptance data demonstrates that, ceteris paribus, these children are achieving good examination results which allow them to attend good universities.

Larner Bernard is ISC's Head of Research and Intelligence.

Footnotes
1 National data is for the UK as a whole and therefore includes ISC schools
2 NB 2007 data was calculated using a different methodology which excluded a number of the joint degree courses.
3 Widening participation in Higher Education - Public Accounts Committee February 09
4 Russell Group
5 The Russell Group Response to HEPI report - Funding Higher Fees: Some implications of a rise in the fee cap. April 2008
6 H Chowdry et al - Widening participation in higher education: using linked administrative data', Institute for Fiscal Studies, 2008

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Equality, Diversity and Education: How Football Helps to Foster Change

Gordon Taylor OBE

The PFA and Education
nd The Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) was founded in 1907. It is responsible for protecting and representing footballers' rights in a multi-million pound industry. Only a minority of modern day players have fast cars and large salaries. The average footballer's career lasts for an average of eight years, though many more are cut shorter than this through injury or ill health.

The PFA has therefore long been a supporter of educational programmes, both internally and within the wider community. Its Education Department offers support to all members, providing advice and guidance to both current and former players. A key role of the Association is to encourage young players with their education, developing further educational courses whilst playing that will hold them in good stead at the end of their playing career. It also works closely with both the Premier League and Football League to ensure that the football scholars (aged 16-18) are academically able and prepared for a post-playing career.

Football in the Community
In the 1980s, England had the worst football hooliganism in Europe, and there were a number of catastrophic stadium disasters (Heysel, Hillsborough, Bradford). Racism and violent conduct were commonplace in football grounds, and women and families were not prominent on match days in the way that they are today. It was an era when government was calling for ID cards for football supporters to attend matches and electric fences to keep hooliganism contained.

The PFA responded to these issues with a brand new concept - a community programme aimed at helping to build closer links between clubs and their local communities. The ultimate intention was to develop links so that Clubs forged a meaningful relationship within the local community and became embedded within local culture and operations. The PFA established its ‘Football in the Community Scheme' in 1983, which has grown into one of the largest  and most successful Corporate Social Responsibility programmes in the country. Football is the only profession in which employment contracts stipulate the player must undertake a minimum of four hours of community service every week, and last year alone, players took part in over 18,000 community visits. Every football club now has strong community programmes which have helped to change the make-up of football stadiums and increased diversity at football matches, with women, children and ethnic minorities all enjoying the delights of the beautiful game.

Football and Anti-Racism
Britain is a diverse nation and it is vital for our children to learn to live together and celebrate difference. Football can help achieve this. Kick It Out and Show Racism the Red Card are two specific programmes that deal with diversity and promote tolerance and equality across society. These initiatives have struck a chord with the many schools that have taken part, and the children involved have identified with their sporting heroes and absorbed the messages they promote. So far the take-up has been mainly in the maintained sector. There is a clear opportunity here for independent schools to get more involved and take advantage of the materials and school visits programmes on offer. Football can be a powerful medium.

I applaud the independent sector for its commitment to sport, unparalleled pastoral care and high standards and aspirations installed within pupils. As the key-holders to the next generation I am sure you will consider how you can include Kick It Out and Show Racism the Red Card in your school timetables to engage pupils within the independent sector directly on equality and diversity issues. Participation in these programmes will help to enable them to play their full part in a country renowned for its fair play and respect, but where more still needs to be done to educate children on the true benefits of diversity.

Gordon Taylor is Chief Executive of The Professional Footballers' Association (PFA).

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Why Opt for Home Education?

Jane Lowe and Fiona Nicholson

The two leading home education charities, Education Otherwise (EO) and Home Education Advisory Service (HEAS), believe that most parents turn to home education when serious difficulties at school cannot be resolved. Here, Fiona Nicholson (EO), and Jane Lowe (HEAS), look at the topical issue of home education.

Bullying is mentioned in around 60% of enquiries received by both charities. Sadly, an increasing number of children have medical needs including depression, anxiety, and other chronic illnesses. Problems arising from special educational needs are also common. Some home educators live too far away from a suitable school and some children do not have a school place at all. Traumatic life experiences have driven several children to attempt suicide and some have succeeded. Both EO and HEAS receive calls from anguished parents, many of whom do not have time to wait, urgently seeking advice on how to ensure their child continues their education, but away from the establishment that has been the cause of much unhappiness.

Personal choice
Not all home educated learners, however, are refugees from the school system. Some are motivated by deeply-felt philosophical, pedagogical or religious convictions. Some such parents come to EO and HEAS for information on what their options are well in advance of GCSE, taking time to plan carefully the best possible education for their child.

Obstacles
It is crucial that home-educated children are able to sit exams, since lacking these formal qualifications can impact them later in life. Parents may, however, find the process of home education frustrating: research by EO and HEAS  shows that finding a centre in which home - educated children can sit exams is the most intractable problem facing private candidates, with many families forced to travel a long way to the nearest exam centre. Young people who have special educational needs are at a particular disadvantage if they require specific facilities or resources, and practical subjects, such as woodwork, can present difficulties of their own.

On the bright side
The good news is that both EO and HEAS have had excellent feedback from many parents who have found independent schools to be particularly helpful in providing a place to sit exams, and extremely open to entering private candidates alongside their own pupils. Parents may not be aware that any centre may accept private candidates, and that no special registration is required. One parent reported that:

"The [independent] school was willing to take H for any exam as long as it was AQA, OCR or Edexcel - the boards that they are registered with. It didn't matter if they were doing the exam or not. They are willing to repeat it this year ..".

How could schools help these young people?
Many parents have told HEAS and EO that actually locating an exam centre is the most difficult aspect of taking exams outside of the school system. There are no longer any open centres provided by the awarding bodies, meaning that the only option is for parents to approach schools and colleges and ask them if they will accommodate a private exam candidate with their own students.

There are schools which already offer facilities for controlled assessment and marking of tasks for private candidates who would like to take GCSEs. The fact that so many offer themselves in this way, and do so willingly year on year, is proof that it need not be a taxing or disruptive process for the school to take on candidates who are externally taught.

An extremely helpful move would be the creation of a list of schools that were willing to be included - perhaps with the name of a contact - as happy to accommodate private candidates. If schools on this list provided details of the awarding bodies with which they are registered, parents could then select appropriate specifications at an early stage for their home-educated child.

The fees that external candidates are charged vary widely. It would be ideal if there were an agreed common system of charges among schools so that parents could budget for the costs. The fees might be broken down into components for papers, practicals and assessments since not all of these elements will necessarily be involved in each home-educated candidate's exam.

Home education and special educational needs
Parents of candidates with special educational needs often experience great difficulty in their search for a centre. Some young people with disabilities have made extraordinary efforts to prepare for their exams, making it all the more important that schools are compassionate by enabling them to sit the exams that are the culmination of this work.

And lastly... the public benefit
To reduce the burden on schools, and to help candidates, EO and HEAS recommend that queries and requests for further information about studying at home be directed at them, rather than at schools themselves. EO and HEAS have been heartened by families' reports of the generous help that they have received from many independent schools. The ‘public benefit' for these young people is considerable, and it is hoped that even more schools might be willing to assist them once they recognise that other schools which already act as centres find it both a pain-free and ultimately rewarding experience.

"It is hoped that even more schools might be willing to assist them once they recognise that other schools which already act as centres find it both a pain-free and ultimately rewarding experience."

Fiona Nicholson, Education Otherwise (EO) www.education-otherwise.org
Jane Lowe, Home Education Advisory Service (HEAS) www.heas.org.uk/.

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The Recession - Independent Schools Fight Back

Larner Bernard

Many pundits argue that the current UK recession will be deeper and last for longer than the last economic downturn in the early 1990s. Th is has fuelled a media frenzy of negative articles on the recession's likely impact on the independent education sector. Of course, given the diffi cult economic conditions, one would expect some schools to have fewer pupils. Other schools might decide to become co-educational and/or merge with another school. In this article, Larner Bernard explores how schools coped with the last recession in the early 1990s and what lessons, if any, can be learnt this time around from that response. There are a number of economic factors which differ in the current recession and therefore not all lessons are transferable. Some head teachers who were around during the last recession also give testament to this view and are heard from later on in this article.

Key economic factors 2009 vs 1991
A recession is defi ned as the contraction of the economy as measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for two consecutive quarters. Th e economy contracted by nearly 2% in 1991 and a further 1% in 1992. In terms of key economic indicators, the main diff erence between the two recessions is that infl ation is a lot lower at this stage of the current recession. Property prices declined by around 20%  during the 1990s recession (down 15% so far this time),  but the picture in different regions was more mixed.

Another key difference this time around is that sterling has fallen against other currencies, making UK goods and services cheaper to foreigners. This may be good news for those independent schools which rely on overseas pupils, irrespective of the fact that there is a world recession.

During the current recession, for those in work, disposable incomes are likely to hold up as mortgage costs (for those on tracker mortgages) have declined, energy costs have fallen, VAT has been cut to 15% and inflation generally continues to decline - with deflation being a real threat to the economy. Unemployment has been focused in the financial, retail and manufacturing sectors.

Unemployment
The chart below1 and key give an indication of how ISC schools' parents may be aff ected by the current spate of redundancies. Note that the redundancy data is based on the first 9 months of 2008 and the Independent Schools Council information & advice service (ISCias)2 callers data is for the period September 2008 to January 20093.

The underlying assumption is that ISCias parent callers' employment sectors are broadly refl ective of the employment sectors of ISC parents as a whole. With this assumption in mind, one would need to be concerned about those sectors which employ a high percentage of ISCias callers and also make up a high percentage of redundancies to date. The sectors which fall into this category are Finance and Business Services and Distribution, Hotels and Restaurants.

On the other hand, Education, health and public administration employ the highest percentage of ISCias callers (25%) and this sector has not suff ered from a high level of redundancies. Government statistics indicate that there have been no redundancies in the Agriculture, Fishing, Energy & Water sectors which represents about 2% of ISCias callers.

Clearly each region in the UK will be different, depending on the local economy, so the above is just a generalisation for the UK as a whole. Nevertheless it gives some comfort that our schools may not be as adversely affected as might be expected.

Overall Picture for ISC Schools during the 1990s recession
Generally, pupil numbers held steady in the immediate aftermath of the recession. Th e total number of ISC pupils rose by 2,245 in 1991 and then declined by a total of 11,458 in the fi ve years to 1996. However, by 1998 total numbers had increased by 13,779 exceeding the decline following the recession.

As can be seen in Chart 2 below, the average number of pupils per school did dip slightly following the recession but remained healthy overall.

• Parents were keen not to remove children from schools around the time of public exams such as GCSEs and GCE A levels.
• For some owners house prices remained strong, therefore parents who experienced a fall in income were able to use the equity in their homes to pay school fees
• A number of schools increased the proportion of pupils from overseas.

Chart 3 shows how the composition and overall totalnumber of new pupils from overseas evolved. The recruitment of overseas pupils increased substantially from 1991 onwards - with pupils from Asia and the Far East leading the growth. The number of pupils from Europe, to a lesser extent, also showed strong growth. Between 1990 and 1994 the total number of overseas pupils increased by 13% - with students from Asia and the Far East increasing by 30% whilst pupil numbers from Europe increased by 17%. The number of students from the Americas fell back in 1991 but then increased from 673 to 949.

During the last recession schools did not cut back on their capital expenditure programme immediately. In 1990 there was a steep rise in capital spending which then levelled out for a couple of years before declining steeply for two years from 1992. So, as with pupil numbers during the last recession, there was also some inertia in capital expenditure figures before they showed signs of the  economic woes in the wider economy. One major reason for this is that projects which had already started had to be completed.

Table 1: Number of pupils Assisted by School

Another question to consider is whether schools helped to retain pupils by offering more in the way of bursaries? The data certainly bears this out. In 1991 there was a rise in excess of 10% in the number of pupils receiving help from schools - this compares with increases of single figures in preceding and following years.

Schools could have responded to the tighter economic conditions by allowing the pupil/teacher ratio to rise; however, this most certainly was not the case. The ratio, calculated using weighted methodology, which corrects for smaller class sizes in the 6th form, shows no arrest in the falling trend during the last recession. Chart 4, however, shows that the pupil/teacher ratio declined from 1990 through to 1994 and then remained constant through to 1998.

Horwath Clarke Whitehill in the 2008 Financial Benchmarking Survey4 commented that they found it anomalous that the pupil/teacher ratio could decline at a time when pupil numbers are falling. To explain this conundrum, they argue that most schools see a decline in pupil numbers as only a temporary phenomenon and therefore would retain teachers for improved times ahead. A school making redundancies would potentially worry parents about the stability of the school.

Strategies adopted - some personal views from Head Teachers/Bursars
The above data shows that schools generally dealt with the period by increasing the recruitment of overseas students, reducing capital expenditure once current commitments had expired, increasing financial assistance to pupils and maintaining the pupil/teacher ratio. Head teachers' and bursars' views, on how their schools coped during the last recession, were attained.

One of the main points emphasised by bursars is that if parents contact them early enough, normally something can be done to help. Their experience, however, is that many middle- and upper-class parents have not experienced unemployment or financial difficulties before and are sometimes reluctant to ask for help until it is too late.

Another Head Teacher emphasised that in order for schools to survive during the last recession, they had to become more customer-focused. Expenditure had to be controlled tightly and schools that were fairly selective had to become less so.

A number of bursars pointed out that during the last recession, because house prices generally held up in some regions, they were able to attach a charge to the parent's property as a last resort. This method in particular was used if the student was about to take public examinations. As the decline in property prices is more widespread geographically than before, these opportunities are now more limited.

Fees
The response of schools to the recession in terms of percentage fee increases was to limit rises to single figures within two years of the recession and increases remained low for some time.

Table 2: Fee increase percentages by year

Average pupil numbers per school increased from 1990 through to 1992 and then remained steady for one year before declining during the two years to 1994. This means that on average, many schools actually experienced increased income during the early years of the 1990s recession.

Conclusion
Undoubtedly there will be some gloomy news during this period for ISC schools but there are also some reasons to be cheerful. The weak exchange rate makes our schools more affordable for overseas students. Inflation is low, with a risk of deflation, which will reduce cost pressures on our schools as will the lower VAT rate of 15%. Furthermore the analysis on ISCias parent callers indicates a degree of cushioning for ISC parents in the current round of redundancies. The main lessons to be learnt from the 1990s recession are to limit fee increases, recruit overseas pupils where appropriate and to increase fee assistance for pupils of hard pressed parents. Schools will have to be creative, keep a tight rein on costs and focus on their customers. HMC research published January 20095 indicates that parents are still keen to secure an independent education for their children as overall interest in school open days and the numbers of pupils registering for common entry and similar tests were very encouraging. These arguments should give some comfort during this difficult time.

Larner Bernard is ISC's Head of Research and Intelligence.

Footnotes
1 Office of National Statistics: First Release, Labour Market Statistics December 2008.
2 The ISCias team provides a 9-5 parental advisory service on the number 0845 SCHOOLS (7246657) and by email infomation@isc.co.uk
3 Post codes of ISCias callers analysed using Experian software to determine likely employment sectors
4 Financial Benchmarking Survey 2008, Horwarth, Clarke & Whitehill
5 HMC Recruitment Confidence Survey - January 2009

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The Cross-Association Leadership Project  

Deborah Odysseas-Bailey

In September 2006, representatives from the independent sector met to discuss the provision of leadership training within the sector. It was recognised that there had been considerable and impressive developments in the maintained sector through the National College for School Leadership, and by the wide uptake by school leaders in that sector of qualifications such as the MBA. This trend had not been mirrored in the independent sector and yet it was felt that a cohesive and collaborative leadership strategy for the sector would be of benefit to all staff in all schools who aspired to leadership. Two days of brainstorming between representatives from all associations, as well as the Association for School and College Leaders (ASCL), together with presentations from the Leadership Trust and the University of Buckingham led to a series of recommendations to be taken forward by a Cross-Association working party.

The Recommendations stated that:

• All ISC associations should collectively establish a leadership programme which would be open to teachers at all stages of their career and open to support staff, bursars and governors. This should be seen as part of the wider national educational provision, and not separate from it;
• The sector needed both to define what it wanted from a leadership programme, and to have the freedom of choice to select from a variety of providers, using either existing leadership packages or commissioning new ones as required. This programme should embrace leadership outside education, and outside the UK. It should have links with the maintained sector;
• ISC associations should be asked to consider ways in which information about their broader professional development activities might be shared more effectively; a meeting of the Chairs of the professional development sub-committees, General Secretaries and Professional Development Officers of all associations would be a useful  first step;
• The working party's main task in the first instance would be to establish the process, timescales and resource implications of such an initiative.

To drive the project forward, Joy Richardson, was tasked as a project officer to action the research aspects of the recommendations for a fixed time, from September 2007 to July 2008. Her work included:

• a survey of all heads with over 500 responses which included activities thought significant to development as leaders (see text box);
• the mapping of the current provision within the sector;
• a summary of the key aspects of what is needed in a leadership programme (devised from heads' responses);

• an audit of relevant national provision in universities, business schools and leadership organisations;

• an examination of current leadership development programmes.

The steering group met on five occasions from January 2007 until July 2008 when a final report was produced. This was presented to a larger number of representatives from the associations at an AGM held in September 2008. After discussion of each of the recommendations from the report www.isc.co.uk/TeachingZone_WelcometotheLeadershipHub.htm it was agreed the working party would focus on implementing specific tasks which arose from these recommendations.

Progress to Date:

• A format for the collection of data from each association for leadership courses has been created to enable the information about courses to be placed on the information hub. This went live in April;
• A draft model of Leadership Competencies, Standards & Models has been circulated to group members and association officials. It includes six levels of progression across five competencies. Each area has a specific set of knowledge requirements and existing courses will be mapped onto the resulting matrix.
• The professional development officers of the associations  have met and shared information about the nature, area of expertise, costs and relative success of their respective provision. It has been agreed that a series of meetings will be planned to continue this sharing of good practice and to discuss wider training issues;
• The business plan will be developed once the terms of reference and the other aspects of the project have been completed;
• The response to the assessment of the number of leadership research projects currently on-going has been regrettably limited. It has been agreed to begin this action point again once the hub is online.

The Future
The on-going progression of the Cross-Association Leadership Initiative is dependent on the good-will of the separate associations to contribute to and support it. The out-going chair, Tim Kirkup, should be thanked for his considerable input into the progress the group has made. The current Chair, Deborah Odysseas-Bailey, and representatives of the associations still have much to do in realising the potential of this initiative, and thus bringing tangible benefits to all schools.

The information hub must provide a clear and logical training path for people working in, or wishing to work in, the independent sector. It should aim to share information about and support the provision of leadership training for Heads, Teachers and Bursars. Leadership course development should explore accreditation and modular formats leading to qualifications which are transferable within the maintained and independent sectors and can meet the needs of the school, the team and the individual.

There is a high level of consensus amongst the associations about this leadership project because there are shared needs. There are also areas where agreement is not always easily reached, and individual association integrity remains an ongoing and sometimes thorny issue. However, the expectation of new teachers and other colleagues who join the independent education sector is that they will have career-long professional development. Appraisal and feedback on performance are the norm; training is seen as expanding horizons. The Cross-Association Leadership Initiative has to develop the infrastructure to provide information about what is already available, to improve access to opportunities and programmes and to open up new provision where there are gaps. With the continued support of all the associations and the hard work and commitment of the working party, we are on the road to fulfilling our original aims.

Membership of the Group at April 2009
Deborah Odysseas-Bailey ISA - Chair
David Boddy (SHMIS)
Judith Fenn (ISC)
Barbara Ingram (IAPS)
Paul Motte (ISBA)
Michael Jeans (AGBIS)
David Thomas (HMC)
Alex Thomson (BSA)

This article was created in partnership by members of the cross Association Leadership group, led by Deborah Odysseas-Bailey, head teacher at Babington House School.

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Impact of New Immigration Rules on Pupil Recruitment and Retention

ISC organised two free briefings for schools in March on the impact of new immigration rules on pupil recruitment and retention. Matthew Burgess outlines the main concerns and the progress made.

In July 2008 the UK Border Agency (UKBA) published its policy guidance giving details of how it saw new immigration rules applying to schools, universities and colleges which recruit students from outside the European Economic Area. Since then, ISC has spent much time working to eliminate anomalies in the guidance which will create needless problems for schools and students, and to communicate with our member schools to keep them informed of progress. This feels like an endless process at times: even at the briefings held in March 2009, attended by almost 250 school representatives, there were moments when the number of outstanding issues seemed overwhelming. Truly, the devil is in the detail. We have provided very detailed information to all schools about the parameters of Tier 4 already, all of which is also available via our Member Zone. The purpose of this article is to shed some light on the issues and approach ISC has taken in its negotiations with UKBA.

Impact on UK PLC
We have tried to keep at the forefront of all our discussions with UKBA the key role played by the independent schools sector in attracting foreign interest and investment into the United Kingdom. When we conducted our last Census, there were more than 20,000 foreign pupils in ISC schools and more than threequarters of these were non-EEA pupils to whom the new immigration rules would apply. Approximately 9,000 new foreign pupils join ISC schools each year. And research indicates that more than 80% of foreign pupils graduating from ISC schools remain in the United Kingdom to take up higher education places. The independent schools sector therefore represents a significant entry point for foreign nationals into the UK.  Any changes to the immigration system affecting school age children which risk placing the United Kingdom at a competitive disadvantage compared to other jurisdictions offering high quality education are therefore to be closely scrutinised. They will represent a loss not just to the schools themselves but to the further and higher education sectors and to the UK economy at large. The United Kingdom must compete to attract the most talented students from overseas: this includes not erecting barriers to entry which may deter potential students from applying.

Schools' legal responsibilities
A key feature of the points based system is that migrants, be they workers or students, must be sponsored by a UK-based institution. For school children, this means the school itself becomes the sponsor of its pupils. With the status of sponsor come new legal responsibilities: principally to keep prescribed records and to report certain events to UKBA. These responsibilities are not limited to term time: the duties imposed on schools in respect of overseas students apply during holidays. Indeed, the school remains responsible for students who have completed their courses, left the school at the end of the summer term and yet may, under the terms of their visa, remain in the United Kingdom for another four months. It is ingrained within schools to take all their responsibilities very seriously and the fact that schools retain legal duties for overseas students outside of term time has inevitably caused consternation. Our discussions with UKBA have enabled us to give some reassurance to schools on this issue. Although you will not find the phrase "sponsorship-lite" in any UKBA guidance, this is perhaps an appropriate description of UKBA's approach to a school's reporting responsibilities outside of term time. In particular, our conversations with UKBA have led us to reassure schools that it would be extreme situations in which the school's theoretical legal responsibility could have practical applications. For example, if the school were to discover that a pupil had been arrested, or gone missing, the school should be reporting these situations to UKBA. In the normal course of events, where a school is not expecting to see a pupil until the following term, or indeed ever again, it would be unlikely to incur liability wearing its sponsor hat.

Streamlining process
When UKBA published its Tier 4 Statement of Intent in July 2008, one of the most unhelpful features was the requirement for school children to reapply for visas throughout their school careers. After lobbying, UKBA agreed a change of policy to allow children under the age of 17 to apply for a visa for the lesser of (i) six years and (ii) the duration of the course of study. This was an extremely welcome concession, since it moved away from the staged approach requiring additional visa applications at defined set points in a pupil's education career at school. Unfortunately, it came to light shortly before the March briefings that UKBA proposed to adopt a restrictive approach to "course of study" which would have the effect of undermining this concession. UKBA stated, in an email to us, that "we consider each individual component of a student's studies to be a separate course. An example of this might be a student who in their academic career studied a pre-GCSE course, a GCSE course and an A Level course. Under Tier 4 we would consider these to be three separate courses, each requiring a separate visa." At the time of writing this article, we are awaiting a response to our latest round of lobbying on this issue.1 Dame Judith Mayhew Jonas wrote to the Immigration Minister, Phil Woolas, pointing out the absurdities of this approach.

• It is not reflective of school practice. Schools offer a place; not a time-limited course or series of courses leading to exams.
• It increases cost and bureaucracy, in some cases substantially, for all parties including the taxpayer. The school must reissue visa letters for each visa application. The pupil must go through the whole application process multiple times and pay multiple visa application fees (on current figures up to £565) and UK ID card fees. UKBA and hence the taxpayer bears an additional cost, as we understand that Tier 4 application fees do not reflect the true cost to UKBA of processing each application.
• The increased cost and bureaucracy do not deliver any corresponding benefit in terms of securing the UK's borders. Each school has reporting obligations to UKBA if pupils cease to attend the school for any reason, so there is no advantage in requiring repeat visa reapplications during the course of education at a single school. As Dame Judith says, "where there is no sound public policy reason for UKBA to adopt, and force schools to adopt, different practices to those currently operating, the principles of better regulation should require regulation to follow practice, rather than the other way round."

In the same letter, which is available via our member zone, Dame Judith urges an increase to the maximum duration of a visa from six to seven years, recognising that many senior schools offer a seven year programme of education from Years 7 to 13. We will of course alert schools to any change in policy.

Open positions
Unfortunately, the issue of visa duration is not the only open issue. There are others.

• Because potential pupils have to demonstrate, at the time of applying for a visa, that they have sufficient funds in place to pay one full academic year's fees, it is vital that schools are able to confirm to students what this amount is. We are aware that some schools will only finalise school fees at the Governor's meeting at the end of the summer term. However, all schools should as a matter of good practice inform parents no later that the beginning of the summer term of the maximum level of fee increase mooted for the following academic year. Accordingly, where the fees have not been finalised, we would expect schools to issue visa letters with a maximum figure for the following year's fees. Pupils will then need to demonstrate access to this amount as part of their visa application.
• Schools which require pupils to attend summer courses before the start of the academic year will have difficult choices to make. Do you formally name preferred  summer course providers as "partners", and thereby ease the visa application process for the pupils but expose yourself to potential risk should your partners default? Do you rely on summer course providers bringing pupils into the country on a visa which can be switched to the school once the pupil is in the UK? This would allow the pupil to apply for the subsequent school visa and commence studies at school without returning home after completion of the summer course. But it exposes the school to the risk of an unfilled place, should the pupil not obtain the subsequent school visa.

Some of these issues should be alleviated by the introduction of online visa letters, called "Certificates of Acceptance of Studies", which school sponsors may issue when UKBA's Sponsor Management System goes live. ISC is represented on a UKBA working group looking at the IT implementation, and will continue to lobby for a sensible and tailored approach that works for schools and pupils alike. We will keep you updated.

Matthew Burgess is ISC's Deputy Chief Executive.

Footnote
1. The Minister has confirmed that a single visa can be issued to cover "all secondary school study involving both pre-GSCE study and GSCE studies provided they are to take place at the same instituition". We are still lobbying to permit the inclusion of post-GCSE studies as well.

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