Raising school standards

[Keaney Michael <michael.keaney@xxxxxx>]

Head quits after altering results of national tests

 By Sarah Cassidy Education Correspondent

 The Independent, 29 June 2001

 A headteacher has resigned after admitting trying to push her
 school up the league tables by correcting her pupils' answers
 to national standard assessment tests.

 Headteachers' leaders and the school's chairman of governors
 are blaming the intense pressure on heads for the behaviour of
 Helen Quick, of Wyndham Primary School, Newcastle upon
 Tyne.

 Miss Quick, 46, who joined the school in January 1994, altered
 answers to maths and science tests sat by 11-year-old pupils
 last month in an attempt to correct their mistakes and improve
 her school's results.

 She kept her secret for nearly a month before confessing to her
 union, the National Association of Head Teachers, which
 advised her to tell the local education authority.

 Wyndham Primary School had recently been given a clean bill
 of health by Ofsted inspectors after a critical report in 1998
 when the school was identified as having "serious
 weaknesses". However, inspectors who visited the school in
 March were still concerned at the school's low standards,
 particularly in maths and science. Union officials said that
 Miss Quick had been worried that another set of poor results
 could jeopardise the school's recovery.

 Miss Quick, a headteacher for 16 years, worked seven days a
 week and took on extra duties because her school did not have
 a deputy head.

 Schools are under increasing pressure to improve their national
 test results. Each school has its own targets as part of its
 contribution to the Government's national targets based on the
 English and maths tests. Wyndham Primary's results were
 way under target, particularly in maths - with just 63 per cent
 reaching the required standards compared with the 85 per cent
 target last year.

 The 30 Wyndham pupils who sat the tests have now had their
 results annulled and the school's scores will not appear in this
 year's league tables. Instead, children will receive unofficial
 gradings based on teachers' assessment of their performance.

 The NAHT blamed the stress of the job yesterday for Miss
 Quick's "error of judgement". John Heslop, the NAHT regional
 officer, said: "Modern headship increasingly involves
 headteachers in more stress than in the past. This can lead to
 errors of judgement such as this one. Helen's integrity before
 this incident was impeccable, and reinforced by her actions in
 drawing the attention of the local education authority to the
 incident." Miss Quick was now "at a very low ebb" but had
 been determined to "come clean" despite the inevitable
 professional cost to herself.

 The school's chairman of governors said Miss Quick's actions
 had been completely out of character.

Full article at:
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/education/story.jsp?story=80827

Michael Keaney
Mercuria Business School
Martinlaaksontie 36
01620 Vantaa
Finland

michael.keaney@xxxxxx