... much more relevant indicator of likely success, and a more appropriate baseline from which to measure value added. However, the term 'success' needs defining - many pupils who are excellent musicians even before they reach year 9 may not obtain the highest marks at GCSE, and this begs the question, what exactly does GCSE music test, the musicality of a pupil (which will be discussed with reference to Howard Gardner's theories of multiple intelligence) or a pupil's ability to 'jump through the hoops' required to do well in this type of exam? Schools continually have their statistics compared, and the practice of comparing 'value added' through the means of a baseline test, is undoubtedly fairer than simply comparing final results. However, if, as I will argue, the baseline test is largely meaningless, music departments should not be put in the difficult position of having to justify any statistical 'evidence' of ...

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