Does size matter in Education

Below is a copy of a written answer to a question I asked regarding Council size and school performance as shown by school banding. Actually there is a small negative correlation against size if you do the analysis.

WRITTEN ASSEMBLY QUESTION

FOR ANSWER BY THE MINISTER FOR

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

ON 11 OCTOBER 2013

　

Mike Hedges (Swansea East):

What correlation is there between council size and the average secondary school band in the council area? (WAQ65616)

Huw Lewis:

　

There is no clear relationship between council size and secondary school bands for schools within the local authority area.

The secondary school banding data for 2012 shows that some smaller local authorities such as Denbighshire perform well (all eight schools are in Bands 1 to 3), while others such as Merthyr Tydfil don’t perform so well (all four schools are in Bands 3 to 5).

The same is true of larger local authorities. Swansea has eleven of its fourteen secondary schools in Bands 1 to 2, while Rhondda Cynon Taf has seventeen of its nineteen secondary schools in Bands 3 to 5.