Page 18 - ELG2009 Sep Issue 472

UK RANKINGS 2020-21 . UK LANGUAGE CENTRES

Excellence counts

Melanie Butler explains how we calculate our Centre of Excellence scores

o become an EL Gazette Centre of
Excellence you need to be a UK PIXABAY
language centre accredited by the
TBritish Council, and to have been
awarded at least nine areas of strength at your
most recent inspection, putting you in the top
25 per cent of centres in the UK, based on the
judgement of the inspectors.
The areas of strength are recorded on the
summary statement, which appears at the
bottom of the first page of the full inspection
report for every accredited language centre.
The reports can be found under the first
letter of the centre name here:
https://www.britishcouncil.org/education/ac
creditation/centres, on the British Council
website.
The summary statement notes every area “The English language teaching department of number of areas it is inspected under. We
for which the centre has an area of strength. this university offers courses in general and start by checking the total number of areas
The British Council inspection covers up to academic English for adults (18+) and young inspected: 13, 14 or 15.
15 areas: strategic and quality management, staff people (16+). The Gazette database, however, lists every
management, student administration, publicity, Strengths were noted in the areas of premises accredited centre with its areas of strengths
premises and facilities, learning resources, and facilities, learning resources, academic and needs for improvement. Since around 10
academic staff profile, academic management, management, academic staff profile, course per cent of centres have a net strength score
course design, learner management, teaching, design, care of students, and accommodation. of zero and another four per cent or so pass
care of students, accommodation, leisure The inspection report noted a need for inspection with a negative net score (more
opportunities, and safeguarding under-18s. improvement in the area of publicity.” needs for improvement than areas of
Two areas of Inspection, safeguarding under- strength).
18s and accommodation, do not apply to all When you put scores of zero and negative
centres, either because they don’t enrol So, while most numbers into a statistical calculation you get
under-18s or because they do not offer centres are inspected some very strange results. Besides, passing
accommodation. A few centres do neither. inspection – even with a score of zero areas of
So, while most centres are inspected in 15 in 15 areas, some are strength or even minus three must be worth
areas, some are only inspected in 14 areas, only inspected in something.
and a handful in 13. To ensure all schools who have passed
For every area inspected, a centre is judged 14 areas, and a inspection are given a positive score, we add
as either having a strength, meeting the a ‘range modifier’ of 4 to their areas of
standard or needing improvement. Only the handful in 13. strength, and then deduct the needs for
‘areas of strength’ and the ‘needs for improvement. Then we divide the adjusted
improvement’ are noted on the summary This centre received seven areas of total by the areas inspected in that centre
statement. strength and one need for improvement so it and report the score as a mark out of ten.
For each accredited centre, we calculate a has six net areas of strength. As it does not This gives us the standardised score.
basic net score. We give one point for each of have nine net areas of strength, it does not Currently only centres with a standardised
the areas of strength noted in the summary qualify as a Centre of Excellence. score of 6.8 or above, and with nine net areas
statement and deduct a point for any need of The obvious thing to do next is to divide of strength, are judged to be a Centre of
improvement. Here is an example: the net areas of strength gained by the Excellence and appear in this listing.

18 September 2020 editorial@elgazette.com 19