Young People Like School … And Want To Go Onto Higher Education

Two-thirds of young people say they enjoy school most of the time, and the majority expect to go to university when they are old enough.

These are the findings of a survey of nearly 2,500 secondary school pupils, conducted by MORI Social Research Institute on behalf of the Sutton Trust and published yesterday. Amongst the 11-16 year olds interviewed, five per cent say they enjoy school all the time and a further 66% enjoy it most of the time.

The research also found that seven in 10 young people (71%) expect to go into higher education after they leave school, with four in 10 young people (40%) saying they are very likely to do so.

Survey findings show a link between a positive experience of school and the likelihood that young people will continue into HE. Nearly four in five young people (78%) who enjoy school most or all of the time think they'll go on to university, compared to less than three in five young people (57%) who don't enjoy school.

Young people who don't enjoy school were asked to say what would make it more enjoyable for them. Here, a suggestion that schools are not completely meeting the needs of all young people emerged. Over half (54%) of respondents who don't like school want lessons that are more interesting, and over a third (36%) want more choice over what subjects I study. Nearly a fifth of these young people (19%) would also like to see the provision of more practical or vocational courses.

Technical details

The survey was carried out between 15 January and 12 March 2003, on the MORI SRI 2003 Schools Omnibus. Fully completed questionnaires were received from a representative sample of 2,469 state school pupils age 11-16 in 100 middle and secondary schools across England and Wales.

Topline Results

• 2,469 interviews were conducted among school children aged 11-16 in England and Wales
• Self-completion questionnaires were completed in 100 classroom sessions between 15 January and 12 March 2003
• Data have been weighted by gender, age and region
• Results are based on all respondents, unless otherwise stated
• An asterisk (*) represents a value of less than half a per cent, but not zero
• Where results do not sum to 100%, this may be due to multiple responses, computer rounding, or the exclusion of 'don't know/Not stated' response categories

Q1 Young people who stay on at school or college in Years 12 and 13, until they are 18, can usually apply for a place at university to study for a degree. This is known as "going into higher education". How likely or unlikely are you to go into higher education when you are old enough?

Q2 Why are you unlikely to go into higher education?

Base: All who are unlikely to go into higher education (343)

Q3 Thinking about your school overall, how would you describe it?

Q4 And thinking about being at school, which of the following statements do you agree with?

Q5 Which of the following, if any, would make school more enjoyable for you?

Base: All who don't enjoy school (587)

Q6 Some young people go to schools that are known as "private" or "independent" schools. The families of young people who go to this type of school pay money (known as "fees") each term. Most young people attend a "state" school which is paid for by the government. The school you attend is a state school. If you had the opportunity, would you want to go to a private school?

Q7 Why would you want to go to a private school?

Base: All who would want to go to a private school (486)

Q8 Why wouldn't you want to go to a private school?

Base: All who would not want to go to a private school (1,712)