Where the 99.95's came from:

[BitcoinEagle]

Hey guys!
Four private schools accounted for more than half of the 37 students across Victoria who achieved a perfect ATAR ranking of 99.95 this year.
Six Scotch College students, six Melbourne Grammar students, four students from Camberwell Grammar School and three from Haileybury attained a maximum ranking.
https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/four-private-schools-dominate-top-atar-rankings-20191212-p53j9z.html

What are your thoughts on this? Reflective of broader performance? A non-issue?

I'm interested specifically on your thoughts on Scotch and Melbourne Grammar and their consistent performances!

[GodNifty]

This is actually very interesting. Both Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar always seems to consistently have 99.95 students and I still can't pinpoint how. It's surprising to see as I would've guessed that any of the selective schools would be at the top with perfect ATARs but apparently not.

[K888]

This is actually very interesting. Both Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar always seems to consistently have 99.95 students and I still can't pinpoint how. It's surprising to see as I would've guessed that any of the selective schools would be at the top with perfect ATARs but apparently not.

Having a higher socioeconomic status is quite strongly linked with higher scores. Obviously not the only contributor to them having consistently high scores but it is a big factor.

[undefined]

Having a higher socioeconomic status is quite strongly linked with higher scores. Obviously not the only contributor to them having consistently high scores but it is a big factor.

A lot of these students would’ve received scholarships in year 7-9, wouldn’t they?

[TheEagle]

Perhaps have begun the content from an earlier age? Typically speaking, going to one of those elite schools means you are very eager about academics. I know of many students who attended Kumon at an early age which means they completed the methods and spesh syllabus 4-5 years prior to doing it at school - turned out half of them went to either top tier private schools or a selective school. Obviously a 99.95 is still likely if you don’t attend one of these schools, it’s happened before! 😀

[Sine]

What are your thoughts on this? Reflective of broader performance? A non-issue?

I think it is unhelpful just to look at the 99.95er's as that is really small for what is a much bigger issue which impacts all students not just those who can do relatively well academically. As others have already said it isn't a secret that students from high SES backgrounds do better in terms of ATARs on average.

A lot of these students would’ve received scholarships in year 7-9, wouldn’t they?

It is definitely a bit of a circular theory where those who sit scholarship exams and do well in them generally already have things like an academically supportive household, higher SES, access to tutors which puts them in position for those scholarships etc

Anything I have said is based on averages and long term probability. I am sure there are some singular anecdotes that may somewhat rebutt some of these statements.

[BitcoinEagle]

Would you say it is high performing students attracted to the school or high performing students created at the school? I know that education at these schools is indeed very high quality and wholistic in terms of scope (indeed due to resources available to them) and that it isn't just 99.95's but a large proportion (10% for Scotch College) achieving above a 99.5.

[TheEagle]

Would you say it is high performing students attracted to the school or high performing students created at the school? I know that education at these schools is indeed very high quality and wholistic in terms of scope (indeed due to resources available to them) and that it isn't just 99.95's but a large proportion (10% for Scotch College) achieving above a 99.5.

I'd say a combination of both. When high performing students are attracted to an elite school, it usually means they want to be surrounded by other high achieving students and an all round strong cohort for a number of reasons such as SAC moderation. In order for a student to consolidate their knowledge at these schools, they would require the foundations of the subject otherwise regurgitating their 'elite resources' would be pointless.

 At the end of the day, their material isn't really the key factor to the school's prosperity; instead it's the compilation of top tier students where they are relatively at the same level due to their strong build up in their early years. If material was a major factor, then my school would've been amongst those schools you named as both my methods and physics teachers exchange resources with teachers from Haileybury and Nossal. When completing their worksheets, only 2-3 people actually do reasonably well, whilst the rest suffer. Sadly, it was the 2-3 people who were actually brought up with a solid base in both mathematics and science.

To top it off, the maths/physics teacher at my school is the owner of iTute, who makes literally all the exams himself (Genius of a man) - for those that doesn't know, iTute is known to make ridiculously hard exams. The tests that he make aren't bad considering you have been taught with a strong foundation because they will really test your knowledge about maths/physics! 

[darkz]

A lot of these students would’ve received scholarships in year 7-9, wouldn’t they?

That's not entirely true. Of those who scored a 99.95 at Scotch, pretty sure only one was a scholarship student.

[BitcoinEagle]

Ah mr darkz! Your bio suggests great experience in the subject matter. What do you believe is the core reason why these private schools do so well?

[SkyArrow]

I'd say a combination of both. When high performing students are attracted to an elite school, it usually means they want to be surrounded by other high achieving students and an all round strong cohort for a number of reasons such as SAC moderation.

This part is probably a legitimate stretch - speaking anecdotally it is the parents who aspire to put their students in top schools. Students' awareness of cohort strength only develops after some time in school - previous perceptions of prestige play little part.

But your overall sentiments are right.

Edit: to clarify, students in year 5/early 6 preparing for scholarships are likely too young to appreciate these motivations (at least I was oblivious haha)