11 Plus Exams Forum

Have found some great information on the forum - thanks everyone.

My DD scored 116 in VRT which surprised both us and the school. The school ranked her as a 1:1, and she's predicted 5s for SATs. Her YR5 CAT scores were Verbal 117, Quantitative 115 and Non-verbal 141. All these were improvements on YR4 and are in line with other improvements made, re-inforcing a continuing sharp upward trend.

Is it worth including these scores as evidence, or am I shooting myself in the foot as the verbal score wasn't particularly high ?

Any opinions/experiences welcome, thank you.

A tricky one!

If I were looking at the year 5 VR in isolation, an 11+ score of 116 might not seem out of place. I note what you say about an upward trend, but the 11+ standardisation is tougher than that used for CATs.

On the other hand, the NVR is exceptional, and you might have a case for suggesting that your daughter's particular strengths weren't tested in the 11+.

Were the previous NVRs also her strongest scores?

I note that the Quantitative is unexceptional, but is she stronger at Maths than English by any chance?

She's clearly doing well in the curriculum, but most appellants are going to have level 5 predictions.

1:1 is fine, just so long as most of the head's 1:1's did actually qualify!

Thank you for prompt response!

YR4 CATs were VR 113, Q 106 and NVR 126, so NVR was far higher even then.

I don't know how accurate the head's recommendations have been with regard to those who passed - a question to pose tomorrow. I'll check what level of 5's have been predicted too. If these answers are in our favour, do you think drawing attention to CAT scores is worth risking ?

All so daunting.....

Hi A&E Mum

I think that if you can demonstrate that your daughter has abilities in subjects such as Maths, Science, I.T. and (possibly) Art, that do not require VR skills but do require NVR skills, you may have the makings of a good case.

I suggest that you explore that route, given the discrepancy in the CATs scores, and the exceptionally high 141 for NVR in Year 5.

Sally-Anne

Hi Sally-Anne,

DD has won an art competition, and was graded as 4a last year for science. Maths is not her strongest subject, but certainly the one she has made most progress in recently.

I will certainly focus more on the NVR ability now, and that could counter any concerns about the CAT marks.

Many thanks for the input,

A&E mum