CEM Mock Exams
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Re: CEM Mock Exams
So it depends on which school the child attends (prep or state school?) + the opportunities given by the tutor.
My DS's tutor offered the possibility to sit a mock. It was highly priced, well written ( i.e. in accordance with the actual exams, though I do not too much for the level if difficulty as I have never seen a real CEM paper
Some tutors offer mock tests not at all up-to-date!!) but there was certainly no big hall like the S. centre offers. The latter experience is invaluable, especially when children sit less exams due to the grouping of them by several schools!
My DS's tutor offered the possibility to sit a mock. It was highly priced, well written ( i.e. in accordance with the actual exams, though I do not too much for the level if difficulty as I have never seen a real CEM paper
Some tutors offer mock tests not at all up-to-date!!) but there was certainly no big hall like the S. centre offers. The latter experience is invaluable, especially when children sit less exams due to the grouping of them by several schools!Re: CEM Mock Exams
Agreed Quasi and Jane!
The one thing that really stood out for us in S mocks was that we could clearly see where our child stood as compared to 500 other children(which is tenth of real test numbers and a good indicator). But to judge the same would be difficult with a private tutor teaching, say, 30 children. And quite often you will find that all 30 are quite bright and a fairly bright child may suffer with confidence issues due to being surrounded by exceptionally bright children. A larger cohort size kind of puts this into perspective.
And it's also true the other way around where a fairly average child can get a false sense of security that they are doing exceptionally well and do not need to stretch themselves any further
The one thing that really stood out for us in S mocks was that we could clearly see where our child stood as compared to 500 other children(which is tenth of real test numbers and a good indicator). But to judge the same would be difficult with a private tutor teaching, say, 30 children. And quite often you will find that all 30 are quite bright and a fairly bright child may suffer with confidence issues due to being surrounded by exceptionally bright children. A larger cohort size kind of puts this into perspective.
And it's also true the other way around where a fairly average child can get a false sense of security that they are doing exceptionally well and do not need to stretch themselves any further
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rimjhimm100
- Posts: 163
- Joined: Thu Oct 22, 2015 5:17 pm
Re: CEM Mock Exams
DS took all the mocks and by the time it was the 'real' exam he took it as yet another mock....it really helped in that way too. He scored well and got into CHB (going to KES Stratford though as I have mentioned earlier on this forum). Looking back, I can definitely say the mocks are really helpful Nard, though like many have advised not all need to be taken! Good luck in your journey
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ShakespeareRocks
- Posts: 5
- Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 9:39 pm
Re: CEM Mock Exams
I think it depends on the child - for us, DD had previously found any type of 'test' in school quite stressful and never seemed to perform as well in the test as she did on a day to day basis. We cracked this through the S mock exams and we haven't looked back since!
On a different level, the mocks provided a broad comparison through rankings (previously we had known our own DD's ability but not the ability of other children potentially sitting the 11+) and also they gave her the opportunity to manage her time effectively under exam conditions - there was certainly a huge improvement in this as each exam was completed. I also liked the fact that her strengths and weaknesses were easily seen through the exams, meaning we knew which areas to focus on.
On a different level, the mocks provided a broad comparison through rankings (previously we had known our own DD's ability but not the ability of other children potentially sitting the 11+) and also they gave her the opportunity to manage her time effectively under exam conditions - there was certainly a huge improvement in this as each exam was completed. I also liked the fact that her strengths and weaknesses were easily seen through the exams, meaning we knew which areas to focus on.
