Fewer young making grade in English

12 April 2012

Fewer 14-year-olds reached the standards expected of their age group in English this year, national test results showed.

Results for maths rose, with 77% of pupils getting Level 5 in their national curriculum tests, and science grades also improved.

But in English, the proportion of pupils reaching the expected grade of Level 5 fell by two percentage points to 72%.

The drop was mirrored in reading, where just 66% made the grade, the Department for Education and Skills statistics showed.

The results for the tests, which are often known as "Sats", showed that boys fared worse than girls in the three Rs.

In reading, just 59% of 14-year-old boys reached the standards expected of their age group, compared with 74% of girls.

In writing, 83% of girls reached Level 5, while only 69% of boys matched them.

And in maths, 77% of girls achieved the expected levels, one percentage point ahead of boys.

Overall maths results went up by three percentage points from 2005.

In science, 72% of pupils reached the expected level for their age - a rise of two percentage points on last year.

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