VALUE ADDED

What do we mean by value added?

Some children will always find it difficult to do well in tests and examinations. But all children are capable of making progress and it is important that schools are given recognition for the work that they do with these children.

The progress that schools help individuals to make relative to their different starting points is usually referred to as value added. Value added measures are intended to allow comparisons between schools with different pupil intakes. For example, school A might show high percentages of pupils achieving five or more GCSE/GNVQs at grades A*-C, while school B shows lower percentages. But in value added terms, the pupils at school B may have made more progress than other pupils who were performing at the same level at KS2, and therefore have a higher value added `score' than school A.

About the 2003 value added pilot

The Department provided the participating schools with the results of their pupils' GCSE/GNVQ results achieved up to the end of the 2002/2003 academic year, which forms the `output' measure for the value added calculation. Details of their KS2 test results that form the `input' measure or starting point of the value added calculation were also provided. The schools were asked to check each pupil's GCSE/GNVQ results and ensure the correct prior KS2 results had been matched to them.

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