Teachers: Assessments

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2007, Official Report, column 126W, on teachers: assessments (1) what the unit cost per test taken was in each financial year since 1999-2000; (153573)

(2) how many of those who successfully passed each test in each year passed on their first attempt;

(3) what the highest number of attempts needed was for any successful student to pass (a) in each year and (b) for each test;

(4) to which part of key stage 4 of the national curriculum the qualified teacher status skills tests equate.

The Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) holds data on the number of skills tests attempted by teacher trainees who successfully passed the tests but not on those taken by trainees who have attempted but have not successfully passed the tests. The available data is collected on an academic, rather than financial year, basis.

	Approximate total number of tests sat by those who passed, by academic year	Approximate total cost of running the tests for year, by financial year	Approximate unit cost per test taken by those who passed their tests
2000/01	55,854	5,245,000	93.91
2001/02	94,821	5,972,000	62.98
2002/03	113,044	4,132,000	36.55
2003/04	121,390	5,349,000	44.06
2004/05	142,654	4,722,000	33.10
2005/06	136,559	4,262,000	31.21

The unit cost is higher in the early years because, while fewer trainees sat the tests, the development costs of the scheme are reflected in them.

The following table shows the number of candidates who passed individual skills tests on their first attempt. This, and further information, is available publicly on the TDA website.

*Number of candidates who passed individual QTS skills tests on their first attempt*
	2000/01	2001/02	2002/03	2003/04	2004/05	2005/06
Numeracy	18,948	22,519	24,744	27,341	26,964	26,964
Literacy	21,037	22,468	25,353	28,864	26,930	27,438
ICT	n/a	23,410	22,765	29,002	25,191	31,418

The 2005/06 cohort data can be found at

http://www.tda.gov.uk/partners/datasurveys/skillstestsresults.aspx.

The 2000/01 to 2004/05 cohort data can be found at

http://www.tda.gov.uk/partners/datasurveys/skillstestsresults.archive.aspx

The following table shows the highest number of attempts needed by some candidates to pass in each year and for each test. Data prior to 2001 are not available.

*Highest number of attempts needed for a successful candidate to pass in each year and in each test*
	Numeracy	Literacy	ICT
2001	26	19	8
2002	24	18	25
2003	24	25	6
2004	23	13	15
2005	28	20	13
2006	28	19	9

The skills tests are broadly consistent with grade C at key stage 4 of the national curriculum but do not equate to any specific part of it.

Volume 464: debated on Tuesday 9 October 2007