Winchester College head, Dr Nicholas Tate, welcomed around 130 delegates for the city's first education conference, entitled "Changing the fortunes of 14 to 19-year-olds".

Dr Tate, who was chief executive of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority before joining the £18,000-a-year college in 2000, addressed Tuesday's conference on how he thought education for teenagers could be improved.

"I think schools have always tried to do their best with individual pupils, but the idea that schools should keep on doing better overall in a corporate way is a relatively new one that has come in over recent years," he said.

He said performance tables were the best way of improving standards - a controversial statement among the audience of mainly sixth-form college and secondary-school headteachers.

"I know how much performance tables are disliked by people in education, particularly by colleagues in the independent sector," said Dr Tate.

"But they have been a good thing in helping to secure improvements in standards."

However, he added that tables could send wrong signals to pupils about the importance of passing exams.

"Some of the least creative, least interesting and most boring people I know have exemplary academic records," said Dr Tate.

"One of my pupils here did only three AS levels. He has nonetheless developed in an extraordinary way during two and a half years and I am sure he will have a golden future in self-employment."

He also said at Winchester College there was a policy of setting aside an hour a day of non-curriculum study, for "liberal discussion which engages boys on topics such as philosophy and politics".

Chief Inspector of Schools, David Bell, also spoke at the conference.

He said vast improvements had been made in school management and teaching standard over the past five years - but not enough attention was being paid to non-A-level students.

"The real scandal is what's happening to students who aren't following the A-level system," he said.

He also said he had noticed deteriorating behaviour in young people during the years he had been involved in school inspections.

"We see better teaching yet at the same time we do seem to be seeing something else happen in relation to behaviour and motivation of young people.

"They see themselves as increasingly disaffected. It does strike me that there's something else going on more widely."

Dr Tate and Mr Bell also took questions from the delegates - headteachers and education workers from around the country.

Afterwards, Dr Tate added that he hoped the conference would become a regular event.

"I am keen that the school with the longest continuous history in England should take the education debate forward.

"We have a special position and the school is always top or near the top of the league tables. It's appropriate for the school to provide an opportunity for people from different bits of the education system to meet and discuss issues of common concern."