There are many factors that might influence an individual student’s achievement at school, and the key ones might well vary between students, each one of whom is unique; that doesn’t render this question impossible to answer. The thoughtful use of data and research findings, alongside our own experience, can help. Using data and research findings always brings the caveat that they will likely only ever offer a partial answer – research mostly tells us what works on average, for example – it indicates ‘best bets’, but best bets don’t always pay off. However, using robust research findings is better than the alternatives of following our hunches, and drawing conclusions only from our own (logically, very limited) experience.
Here is my list of the main factors influencing students’ achievement at school, divided into Student-level Factors and School-level Factors. There are probably some extraneous factors, too, such as the changing accountability measures set by Government and/or others, and the value placed on academic achievement by the society to which the student belongs, but I’m ignoring those.
Student-level factors
The student’s home situation: the stability of their home life; their parents’ attitudes towards education; how invested the parents are day-to-day in their child’s schooling, and how this manifests itself (eg helping with homework and the provision of private tutors); the family’s socio-economic circumstances etc.
Peer effects: the impact of friends and acquaintances.
How much the student already knows – this is sometimes called their ‘background knowledge’ or their ‘ability’. ED Hirsch took this view on knowledge: ‘Breadth of knowledge is the single factor within human control that contributes most to academic achievement and general cognitive competence …’
How ‘intelligent’ they are: this is usually divided into their general mental acuity (e.g. how quickly they pick things up) on the one hand, and the quantity and quality of their knowledge on the other.
Their prior attainment: how well they have attained previously, for example in formal tests and exams such as the Year 6 SATs – this is obvious closely linked to the previous point about what they know and can do.
Their personal characteristics (other than prior attainment): how motivated they are in general; their interests; their beliefs about themselves; their general attitudes towards school and learning; how hard they typically work; their ability to concentrate; any SEND they may have etc …
How they typically study: the specific techniques they use to study and revise material that has already been presented to them by teachers.
School level factors
The school a student attends: e.g. how well students at the school typically achieve; the school’s success in creating a positive culture and environment for learning; the impact of school peer group effects; the quality of school leadership; class sizes; ability grouping etc.
The quality of day-to-day instruction the student receives.
The school’s curriculum: what is taught, how the content is sequenced etc. On this one, Dylan Wiliam says, ‘there are two things that can improve educational achievement substantially, and with little additional cost. The first is to ensure that the curriculum in each school is content-rich and is focused on developing knowledge…’
You may be able to think of other student-level and school-level factors – I’m certain that my list is not exhaustive. But from my list, if you had to pick one factor as the single most important one in terms of its impact on students’ achievement, which one would you choose? My own answer is below, but please choose yours now before reading on!
What complicates the question, of course, is that a lot of the factors are inter-related, some of them deeply so.
The ‘answer’ for me is very articulately put by Dylan Wiliam in his seminal book, ‘Embedded Formative Assessment’: ‘It turns out that as long as you go to school, it doesn’t matter very much which school you go to, but it matters very much which classrooms you’re in … The most critical difference is simply the quality of the teacher’. From my list above, then, the one standout factor is the quality of day to day instruction the student receives – how well they are typically taught.
And back to Dylan Wiliam’s two things that will improve educational outcomes, the first of which (curriculum) is already quoted above. ‘The second is creating an expectation that all teachers in the district, even if they are already the best, continue to improve their classroom practice’.
If you’re interested to know more, Wiliam’s already-mentioned book and his later one (which I have just quoted from), ‘Creating the schools our children need’ have a lot to say on teacher instruction. Having made the key point Wiliam goes on to emphasise the importance of teacher development – all teachers can improve, even those who are already good – and that’s presumably where Government and school leaders need to invest the majority of their energies. But do we?
