Literacy news
Over half of five-year-old boys not making enough progress, data shows
17 Dec 2010
More than half of all boys in England are not making good enough progress at school by the time they reach the age of five, government statistics revealed yesterday.
The figures, published by the Department for Education, are based on teachers' observations of hundreds of thousands of five-year-olds.
Children are tested for 13 skills, covering their physical, intellectual, emotional and social development. Those that achieve at least six points for each skill and score well in the social and emotional development category are said to be reaching "a good level of development".
The tests, called the Early Years Foundation Stage, have been described as the "nappy curriculum". They include children being measured to see whether they can recite the letters of the alphabet and write their names.
The data showed that 64.9% of girls achieved a good level of development in the tests this year, compared with 46.8% of boys.
The gap between the genders is almost the same as it was last year – 18.2 percentage points, compared with 18.1 last year. Overall, 55.6% of all pupils achieved a good level of development.
Just 39.5% of pupils eligible for free school meals – a key measure of poverty – achieved a good level of development, compared with 59.2% of their classmates not eligible for free school meals.
This is narrowing, the statistics showed, standing at 19.7 percentage points, down from 20.5 last year.
A spokeswoman from the Department for Education said a higher proportion of young children were reaching a good level of development this year than last.
"But there are still too many children starting school without the solid foundation they need to succeed," she added. "In particular, we're concerned that boys continue to lag behind girls even before they start school, especially in writing."
Read more on The Guardian website.
