Is the number of in-catchment places that get a qualifying score – 303 points and above – statistically controlled in any way to correlate with the number of places available at schools in the area by post code (WHSB and SHSB for boys and WHSG and SHSG for girls; KEGS and Colchester schools don’t have ‘fixed’ cut-off scores)? In other words, is there another statistical calculation that ‘sorts out’ in-catchment and out-of-catchment scores to make sure that all the in-catchment children with a score of 303 and above will get in if they choose to apply and the school is not oversubscribed by in-catchment children with a qualifying score?
I do appreciate that the standard deviation is calculated every year and the results may be age adjusted; they’re also standardised to fit the curve and ensure the same number of children pass each year. But all the IC children with a score of 303 who apply for a place have been guaranteed a place on offer day since this was introduced and we were wondering if there is another statistical calculation that correlates the post code (the in-catchment admission criterion) with the result to make sure that there are no more qualifying scores than the number of places available at these schools.
My question is purely theoretical and came out from discussions with a friend whose child sat the exam earlier this year (receiving a high score that will guarantee entry both IC and OOC; my DC is also at a local selective school). As we were looking at the scores when they were published, we wondered if there is another mechanism that stops the schools with a fixed cut-off point of 303 from being oversubscribed by IC children. There is nothing available publicly that would suggest the scores are further aligned with the post code but my friend seems to think there may be an additional calculation to prevent oversubscription.
I’ve looked at standardised scores from the last couple of years – there are hundreds of qualifying scores; they don’t seem to be segregated by post code. I would say there’d be too many variables to correlate the result with the post code; my friend disagrees but we can’t find a definite answer to our question.
Thank you for reading a very long question. There is a lot of experience on this forum and we’d appreciate your words of wisdom. Thank you!
I do appreciate that the standard deviation is calculated every year and the results may be age adjusted; they’re also standardised to fit the curve and ensure the same number of children pass each year. But all the IC children with a score of 303 who apply for a place have been guaranteed a place on offer day since this was introduced and we were wondering if there is another statistical calculation that correlates the post code (the in-catchment admission criterion) with the result to make sure that there are no more qualifying scores than the number of places available at these schools.
My question is purely theoretical and came out from discussions with a friend whose child sat the exam earlier this year (receiving a high score that will guarantee entry both IC and OOC; my DC is also at a local selective school). As we were looking at the scores when they were published, we wondered if there is another mechanism that stops the schools with a fixed cut-off point of 303 from being oversubscribed by IC children. There is nothing available publicly that would suggest the scores are further aligned with the post code but my friend seems to think there may be an additional calculation to prevent oversubscription.
I’ve looked at standardised scores from the last couple of years – there are hundreds of qualifying scores; they don’t seem to be segregated by post code. I would say there’d be too many variables to correlate the result with the post code; my friend disagrees but we can’t find a definite answer to our question.
Thank you for reading a very long question. There is a lot of experience on this forum and we’d appreciate your words of wisdom. Thank you!
Statistics: Posted by AskingForAFriend — Tue Jan 02, 2024 10:35 am