In short
- An English program page needs five things: what you teach and to which level, how much pupils do, group results, how a parent follows their child, and a contact.
- Studies of school websites in Australia, Sweden and the United States found thin information for parents.
- A page is believable when it is specific, dated, checkable and current, and a badge is worth showing only when it links to live evidence.
- Make the page readable by everyone: text alternatives for images, enough contrast, link text that says where it goes, and plain language.
Most school websites say the English program is 'excellent' and stop there. A parent choosing a school cannot do anything with that word. They can do something with 'Grade 5 reads at A2 and finished 1,340 stories last year, updated March'. This article lists what belongs on an English program page, reports what research on school websites has found, and explains what makes a page believable and readable by everyone.
What should a school publish about its English program?
Publish five things, in this order. What you teach and to which level. How much pupils read and do. What they have achieved as a group. How a parent can follow their own child's progress. Who to contact. Each one answers a question a parent asks before they enrol, and together they fit on one page.
- What you teach, and to which level. Hours per week, the reading program, and the level each grade reaches on a scale a parent can look up, such as the CEFR.
- How much pupils read and do. Stories read per term, sessions per week, quizzes taken, with the date of the count.
- What pupils achieved as a group. Level movement by grade, competition placings, words retained. Group numbers only, never a named child without agreement.
- How a parent can follow their own child. The report they will get, how often, and what it shows.
- Who to contact. A named English coordinator, an email address, and how long a reply takes.
Notice what is missing: adjectives. 'Excellent' costs nothing to write, so it proves nothing. A number with a date and a comparison does the work instead. For the results part, see How to Show Your School's English Results to Prospective Parents.
What research on school websites has found
Three studies looked closely at school websites. Each covers one country and one kind of school, so read them as snapshots.
Taddeo and Barnes (2016) examined 30 school websites in South Australia. They judged each site as a teaching and learning portal, an administrative support tool and a marketing platform, and found that investment and perceived importance varied considerably between schools. They proposed a development framework that reflects a school's identity and the needs of its stakeholders.
Gu (2017) studied the websites of 12 K-9 schools in four municipalities in Sweden. The study is small. It found that information for parents was generally limited, and that schools seemed to expect parental involvement in the social side of a child's development rather than in learning. Independent schools' sites were richer and fresher than most public school sites. Gu also noted a need for sites that parents with immigrant backgrounds and non-Swedish speakers can use.
Wilson and Carlsen (2016) analysed 55 elementary charter school websites in one diverse metropolitan area of the United States. They read the sites as texts that signal which families 'fit' a school, and found implicit messages about race, culture and diversity, and different meanings of academic achievement. Their conclusion is about a market of school options sorting families, not about English teaching. The lesson for a private school is that a website always says who it is for, whether or not you intend it.
One more study shows that clear information changes what parents do. Hastings and Weinstein (2008) analysed two experiments in a public school choice plan in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, in the United States. Lower-income families were given direct information on school test scores, and receiving it significantly increased the share choosing higher-performing schools. The setting is public school choice, not private admissions, but the parents acted on a number they could read.
None of these studies looked at English programs in international or private language schools. Nobody has, as far as we can find. What they share is a picture of pages thin on the information parents need. How Do Parents Choose a School? covers the parents' side.
What makes a page believable
A believable page has four properties. It is specific, dated, checkable and kept current. Each one gives the reader a way to test what you say.
- Specific. 'Grade 6 reads at B1' beats 'strong readers'.
- Dated. Every number carries its term or its month. 'Updated March 2026' tells the reader the page is alive.
- Checkable. A level on a public scale, a competition with a public standings page, a report a parent can ask to see.
- Current. Results from three years ago tell the reader the program is not watched.
Fogg and colleagues (2003) asked 2,684 people to compare the credibility of two live websites on the same topic, such as health or news, and to write comments. The 'design look' of the site was mentioned most often, in 46.1 per cent of the comments. Comments about information structure and information focus came next. The authors had hoped for more rigorous evaluation and did not find it. Participants were mostly in the United States, mostly female and heavy web users, and none of the sites were school sites.
Two things follow for a school page. A cluttered or dated design costs you credibility before anyone reads a word. Then the reader looks for information that is well organised and to the point, which is what the four properties give them.
Badges and awards: worth showing only when they link somewhere
A badge is a claim in a picture. 'Reading School 2026', 'Accredited', 'Top 10'. On its own it proves nothing, because anyone can draw one. A badge is worth showing when it links to live evidence, and worthless when it links nowhere.
Apply the same tests. Does the badge link to a page run by the body that gave it? Is it current, or is it a 2019 badge still sitting in the footer?
- Worth showing: a placing that links to the organiser's public standings, an accreditation that links to the accreditor's register, a reading badge that links to a live page of group results.
- Not worth showing: a trophy image with no link, a 'Top School' badge from a site that sells them, or a badge for a year that has passed.
Put the evidence one click away and let the reader check. If a badge cannot be checked, take it down, because it costs more credibility than it earns. When the evidence names pupils, follow How to Publish Student Achievements Safely before you link to it.
Make the page readable by everyone
Some parents read on a phone in poor light. Some use a screen reader. Some read English as a second language, which is likely if they are choosing an English program. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2, a W3C Recommendation, say content must be perceivable, operable, understandable and robust. In plain words, for a school page:
- Give every image a text alternative that says what it shows (success criterion 1.1.1). A chart of results needs the numbers in text too.
- Use enough contrast. Text needs a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 against its background (1.4.3). Pale grey on white fails.
- Do not use colour alone to carry meaning (1.4.1). A red or green level marker needs a word beside it.
- Write link text that says where it goes (2.4.4). 'See the Grade 6 results' works. 'Click here' does not.
- Put text in text, not in pictures (1.4.5). A results table saved as an image cannot be read aloud, searched or translated.
- Let the text grow to 200 per cent without breaking the page (1.4.4), and give the page a title that says what it is (2.4.2).
Gu (2017) pointed to parents with immigrant backgrounds who could not use Swedish school sites. The same applies to a page read by parents whose English is limited. Use short sentences, and offer the page in your families' main home languages.
Section by section: what to put and how often to update
Put the update date at the top of the page, and set a reminder for each row.
| Page section | What to put | How often to update |
|---|---|---|
| What we teach | Hours per week, the reading program, the level each grade reaches on the CEFR. | Once a year, before admissions open |
| How much pupils do | Stories read, sessions attended and quizzes taken last term, by grade. The date of the count. | Every term |
| What pupils achieved as a group | Level movement by grade since September. Placings with a link to the standings. No named pupils without agreement. | Every term, and within a week of any placing |
| How you follow your child | A sample report with invented data, how often it goes home, and what it shows. | When the report format changes |
| Who to contact | The English coordinator's name, an email address and a reply time. | Whenever staff change |
| Badges and awards | Only badges that link to live evidence, with their year. | Every term; remove anything expired |
The 'how much pupils do' row is the one most schools skip and the one that dates fastest. It is also the easiest to fill if your reading program records it. KPIs & Metrics for a School Reading Program lists the counts worth keeping. Say what the levels mean in one line, or link to CEFR Levels A1–C2 Explained. A parent who does not know what B1 is cannot judge the claim.
An example English program page
The page below is for an invented school with invented numbers. It shows the shape.
Example page outline (an invented school, invented numbers)
English program, Grades 1 to 9. Updated 14 March 2026.
What we teach. Five English lessons a week, of which two are levelled reading sessions. Grade 3 reads at A1, Grade 5 at A2, Grade 7 at B1, Grade 9 at B2. What the levels mean: [link].
How much pupils read. Last term, our 312 pupils in Grades 3 to 9 finished 2,870 levelled stories and took 5,400 quizzes. Grade 5 read most: 11 stories per pupil.
What our pupils achieved. Since September, 41 of 58 Grade 5 pupils moved from A1 to A2. We placed fourth among A2 schools in the spring reading standings: [link].
How you follow your child. Every parent receives a termly report showing level, stories completed and words retained. Sample report: [link].
Who to contact. Ms R. Haddad, English coordinator. english@example-school.edu. We reply within two school days.
Badges. Reading School 2026: [link to the live public page].
Every line can be checked or dated. The competition line links out, the report line links to a sample, and the badge links to a live page. The one number a parent cannot check, the 41 of 58, carries its base and its period, which is the honest way to state a gain. The same rules apply to reporting reading progress to parents once a child is enrolled.
How iRead handles this
In iRead, each school can have a public page with a message, its own logo and colours, the packs it runs, featured stories with their values, and achievements. It shows aggregate numbers only, never individual students. Appearing in the schools directory and the inter-school competition is opt-in. A 'Reading School' badge on the school's own website links to that live page.
The core principle: Publish numbers a parent can check, date every one of them, and never show a badge that links nowhere.
See it in iRead: Each school can have a public page showing the packs it runs, featured stories with their values, and achievements as aggregate numbers only. A 'Reading School' badge on your own website links to that live page.
See public school pagesKey takeaway
Five sections, each with a dated number and something to check, make a page a parent can trust. Update it every term and keep it readable by everyone.
Frequently asked questions
What should a school website include about its English program?
Five things. What you teach and the level each grade reaches. How much pupils read and do each term. What they achieved as a group. How a parent follows their own child. Who to contact. Give each one a date and something the reader can check.
Should a school publish test results or reading levels on its website?
Publish group results with their date and base, such as level movement by grade. Hastings and Weinstein (2008) found that lower-income parents in a United States choice plan acted on direct score information. Never publish a named child's result without agreement.
Are school website badges and awards worth showing?
Only when a badge links to live evidence run by the body that gave it, such as a standings page or an accreditor's register. A badge with no link, or one for a year that has passed, proves nothing and costs credibility.
How often should a school update its program page?
Update the counts and group results every term, the teaching description once a year before admissions open, and the contact whenever staff change. Put the update date at the top of the page. A three-year-old date tells parents the program is not watched.
What does an accessible school website need?
Under WCAG 2.2, a text alternative for every image, text contrast of at least 4.5:1, and meaning not carried by colour alone. Link text should say where it goes, and text should stay as text, not images. Add plain language and your families' main home languages.
Sources
- Taddeo, C., & Barnes, A. (2016). The school website: Facilitating communication engagement and learning. British Journal of Educational Technology, 47(2), 421-436. doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12229
- Gu, L. (2017). Using school websites for home-school communication and parental involvement?. Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy, 3(2), 133-143. doi.org/10.1080/20020317.2017.1338498
- Wilson, T. S., & Carlsen, R. L. (2016). School marketing as a sorting mechanism: A critical discourse analysis of charter school websites. Peabody Journal of Education, 91(1), 24-46. doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2016.1119564
- Fogg, B. J., Soohoo, C., Danielson, D. R., Marable, L., Stanford, J., & Tauber, E. R. (2003). How do users evaluate the credibility of Web sites? A study with over 2,500 participants. Proceedings of the 2003 Conference on Designing for User Experiences (DUX '03), ACM, 1-15. doi.org/10.1145/997078.997097
- Hastings, J. S., & Weinstein, J. M. (2008). Information, school choice, and academic achievement: Evidence from two experiments. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 123(4), 1373-1414. doi.org/10.1162/qjec.2008.123.4.1373
- World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) (2024). Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2. W3C Recommendation, 12 December 2024. www.w3.org/TR/WCAG22/