Sir Your front page headline, Trauma of two-tier switch 'worth it' (Report, March 31) is extremely misleading by implying that all city schools have benefited from the re-organisation.

The 2005 results show for the first time the impact of the National Key Stage 3 Strategy which has been in operation for the past three years. Clearly this extensive, expensive and detailed curriculum programme has had a beneficial effect on results across county schools. It is good news that overall our county schools are improving at Key Stage 3 so that they are now above the national average.

A more careful analysis of the table of results published on page four of the same edition coupled with comparisons of results over the past three years, also sourced from The Oxford Times, reveals a different picture for city schools.

The 2005 Key Stage 3 results are for the first pupil group to have spent all three years of Key Stage 3 in the city secondary schools and can show no influence from the now defunct middle schools. The results for 2003 are for the last year when the pupils had spent two years in middle schools and one year in upper schools.

Comparing these shows that the Value-Added scores have increased for Cheney (0.8) and Cherwell (0.6) and decreased for Oxford (0.6) and Peers (0.5). The average points scores show an increase for Cheney (2.2) and Oxford (1.2) and a decrease for Cherwell (0.2) and Peers (0.5). It is certainly true that Cheney School can celebrate their improved results at Key Stage 3 over the past few years. The headteacher generously acknowledges,' a good staff from the former middle school teachers,' as a major factor in this success.

The results for the secondary schools in the south-east of the city show no discernible improvements as a result of the city reorganisation.

Martin Thomas, Retired headteacher, Temple Cowley Middle School