English Grammar Schools
Grammar schools are the only state secondary schools in England that are permitted to select pupils by academic ability. Grammar schools are state-run and don't charge fees. Students that want to gain a place at a grammar school have to undergo a selection test, usually at the age of 11. Many grammar schools are single-sex.
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Naming
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Confusingly, not all grammar schools have "grammar" in their name, and some schools that bear that word in their name are not actually grammar schools, but rather independent (fee-paying) schools. Additionally, in Scotland, there are schools with "grammar" in their name even though selective state schools don't exist in Scotland at all. If looking for a grammar school, it's important to check the school type rather than relying on the name.
Locations
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There are 164 state grammar schools in England but English grammar schools are not spread uniformly across the country. Only 36 of the 150 education authorities have any grammar schools, and many have just a few. The county of Kent, south of London, has 34 grammar schools; Lincolnshire (in the East Midlands region) has 15, and Buckinghamshire (just north of London) has 13. Several London boroughs also have grammar schools.
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Entry
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Grammar schools operate at secondary-school level, which in England starts at the age of 11. The entry exam is commonly called 11-plus, although some schools have another entry point at the age of 13. Exams vary depending on the school, but the tests tend to cover math, English and intelligence (in the form of verbal and non-verbal reasoning).
Many parents arrange for expensive private tuition for their children before the exams, and the overwhelming majority of the grammar schools' intake is middle or upper-middle class. Although the grammars don't charge for tuition, there tends to be a premium on house prices in the areas close to them, as it is for other state schools that achieve good exam results.
Results
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Grammar schools follow the National Curriculum. As they select their students by ability, they achieve excellent results in exams. In 2009, students in grammar schools achieved, on average, higher results in A-level exams, taken at 18 years old than pupils in the independent (fee-paying) sector.
Although the very top of the school league tables is still occupied largely by the best independent schools (these are fee-paying, and often confusingly called "public schools" in the UK), grammars occupied 84 of the 200 places on the list of schools with the best A-level results in 2009.
Controversy
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There is a political controversy raging around grammar schools in the UK. Many believe that selection at the age of 11 is unfair and counterproductive. Any system that determines a child's educational path at such a young age will by default favor children from middle-class families who have ambitious parents that value education.
Alternatives include comprehensive education, where all children attend the same school and follow the same curriculum, as well as in-school streaming, where children are flexibly grouped by ability depending on their competence in a particular subject (this is common in Scottish schools).
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References
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