Bucks CC report on impact of coaching on 11+ test

[patricia]

I received a call from a good friend the other day in a panic her daughter is in year 3 thought she would ring a tutor to book her on for year 5 guess what full up she was told she really needed to start in year 4!!!!!
.

Any tutor that states a child must start in year 4 for the current VR test, should be avoided. They do not have the childs best interest at heart.

Patricia

[pippi]

As someone already stated DCGS do not take any notice of VR scores in fact they make a point of it in presentations later on at the school (have sat through 2)!!

Well, I think they actually do take some notice of VR scores....
Another Ratners moment: http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6210902

[MollyB]

Regarding DCGS VR I meant after the admission to school it is Bucks County Council who decide who gets in,at the moment anyway!Interesting read which is something everyone in Bucks is only too aware of maybe it is time for a change I feel the coaching has gone way too far and that is not what state Grammars are all about I hardly know of anyone who did not have coaching for the 11 plus. I am totally behind an overhaul to the admission criteria. Not popular I know but then everyone would be in the same boat or is that being totally unrealistic back in my day of the 11 plus we just turned up and sat it........... (bring out the violin)

[ClappedOutMum]

Presumably it is too much to ask for Bucks to just go to a fully comprehensive system as exist in most other counties - which will remove the pressure and the social segragation?

[Rob Clark]

Regarding DCGS VR I meant after the admission to school

Yes, so did I Molly, when I originally made that point. I meant that once the boys start at the school the sets are not decided on the basis of 11+ scores, and nor are their KS3 or GCSE predictions. 11+ is disregarded the day they start.

As a parent with one DC at a GS and one at the nearest upper school, I can’t say I have noticed much social segregation to be honest. Obviously south Bucks isn’t the most socially diverse area of the country… however both my DCs have friends from a wide range of schools – private, grammar and uppers – who they socialise and play sport with.

[Guest55]

Clappedoutmum - Bucks achieves the highest % 5 GCSE 5 A* to C including English and Maths of nearly all LAs. I believe that the GCSE % A* to C in Maths for Upper schools is higher than National - clearly something works well.

My DC also has friends from a wide range of schools; some GS have a wide social and ethnic mix.

[Amber]

Clappedoutmum - Bucks achieves the highest % 5 GCSE 5 A* to C including English and Maths of nearly all LAs. I believe that the GCSE % A* to C in Maths for Upper schools is higher than National - clearly something works well.

That got me thinking and with a bit of quick research I discovered that for the most recent data, released last year but which is admittedly 3 years old, Sutton (selective) has the highest GCSE results with 14.8% over the national average; then Hammersmith and Fulham (no idea if selective or not) 12.5% over average; then Gateshead (non-selective) 11% over the national average. Next were Trafford (partially selective), Bath and North East Somerset (non-selective), County Durham (non-selective), Bucks (selective) and York (non-selective).

A search for the wealthiest county in England offers Bucks or Surrey every time: perhaps that might have more to do with the Sutton and Bucks results than the type of school?

Just a quick search btw, don't claim this to be the last word in empirical evidence.

Source http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; (can't make the actual link work here but try searching GCSE results by county if you are interested)

[Looking for help]

I would tend to agree that the Bucks results are more to do with the standard of living of the people there than any real benefit provided by selective schools- otherwise why would the upper schools do so well ?

It is not inner city London or Manchester or Glasgow, now is it ?

[Rob Clark]

DD’s upper school was in special measures 7 years ago, but 6 years of a brilliant HT has turned it round. In 2006 only just over 100 children applied for Y7 entry (capacity is 150); this year 221 have applied. (Sorry Amber, I know you’ve heard this before, but I can’t help singing her praises )

What I find most interesting about those figures you posted is that there’s a real mix between selective, partially selective and non-selective areas. So is it as simple as they are all in affluent areas, or are there other factors at play?

[Looking for help]

That might have to do with changes over the time period with regard to catchments etc ....we used to live in Bracknell, and all the secondary schools there (except for one) were absolutely dreadful when my oldest was going to secondary school in 2002.

The loss of free school transport to faith schools (no Catholic school there) and the council making it very difficult for people to travel outwith the borough to surrounding schools has eventually paid off in so far as at least one of them is a lot better now.

Fortunately we no longer live there