Isle of Wight behind on GCSEs

By Martin Neville

Thursday, January 14, 2010

GCSE students on the Island are still lagging behind their national counterparts.

Figures show 41.6 per cent of Island students achieved five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C, including English and maths, compared to 41.3 per cent last year and 50.7 per cent nationally.

Of local education authority-run schools, Carisbrooke High was top performer, with 51 per cent of students reaching the benchmark standard.

Sandown and Medina High were the worst performing, with 38 per cent, according to figures released this week.

They also showed more IW students absent from school, with persistent absence at 8.3 per cent, compared to 5.8 per cent nationally.

Reporter: martinn@iwcpmail.co.uk