Sats results: brightest children 'going backwards' at 11
Fewer children left primary school this summer with top exam results, it emerged today, sparking claims that teachers are failing the brightest pupils.
Official figures show the number of 11-year-olds exceeding the target expected for their age dropped in 2011, despite billions spent by Labour attempting to improve standards of primary education.
Results plummeted fastest in writing, with the number of pupils achieving upper-level scores down by a fifth in just 12 months.
The drop comes despite an overall rise in the number of children achieving the basic standards that all 11-year-olds are expected to meet in the three-Rs.
It will fuel claims that schools are focusing on average children to boost their position on league tables while ignoring the very brightest or those at the bottom.
Nick Gibb, the Schools Minister, welcomed the overall rise but insisted a third of pupils would still start secondary education next month without even achieving the basic standards for their age.
Read more
... (Daily Telegraph - 02 August)