Connolly, P. (2008) (Mis)Representing underachievement: A more detailed reply to Gorard and Smith. Unpublished Paper.

In 2006 I published a critique of Gorard’s (1999) notion of the “politician’s error” and his associated advocacy of the use of proportionate methods for measuring differences in educational attainment between groups (Connolly, 2006a). This initial critique attracted a reply from Gorard and a brief response by me to that reply (Gorard, 2006; Connolly, 2006b). Following this initial critique, I published a wider critical review in 2008 of various aspects of Gorard’s work on gender and educational achievement that he had published with colleagues over the last decade (see Connolly, 2008a). One significant aspect of this work that I focused on in my review was that undertaken by Smith with Gorard (see Smith, 2003; Gorard and Smith, 2004). This more extended critical review also attracted a reply, this time from Gorard and Smith (2008). While I was given the opportunity to offer a brief rejoinder to this reply (Connolly, 2008b), the limits of space meant that I was unable to address any of the specific points raised by Gorard and Smith in any detail. The purpose of this present paper is therefore to address each of the substantive points raised by Gorard and Smith (2008). As such, this paper should be read in conjunction with these other articles.

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