11 Plus Exams Forum

Our son scored 115 and 119 in recent 11 plus exam.

We are eager to appeal, strongly supported by the head master
Academic achievement
His exam results in the spring were
History 86%, Geography 98%,
Maths 4a,
English 4a
Science 3
Predicted to achieve in Year 6
Maths 5c
English 5c
Science 4a
Average reading Age (July 2009) 13.9
Average Spelling Age (July 2009) 11.2
Practice tests
Best score 123

Extenuating circumstances
Changes to key staff at beginning of Year 6 ie new teacher and head teacher. There was much disturbance during the practice tests e.g. door left open, classes thundering past, interuption during mocks
.
All these contributing factors definitely put our son on his back foot when he took the VR exams.

During the VR tests, felt nervous and expressed he felt faint asking for a window to be opened. In the second test another pupil shouted out ‘last page!’

He is a young age for his year and takes time with his questions. His problem is speed and not finishing. All his questions that he did tackle would have been mostly correct.

His Grandfather (who he was close to and saw every day) died about 1 ½ years ago.
We still think he is affected by the loss of this key role model.

Would it be possible to ask for advice on strengths and weaknesses with this case?

Hi wossnames

I am no expert on individual cases but have you read the Q & A's for appeals it is extremely helpful.

I think appeals paperwork has to be in by this Friday 11/12 if you received results on 20/11 (in Bucks), we are also appealing so will be taking the paperwork by hand this week.

Good luck with your appeal.

HI wossnames,

The staff changes may well be worth a menton as would the feeling faint on the first test ( I am assuming that was the 115). If he was not ill then this would possibly show his anxiety or lack of maturity when in test conditions. The panel will be looking to see whether nearer to the 115 or the 119 is more indicative of your ds's ability.
The predicted 5's in English and Maths are good but I would expect a 4a result in the spring to be higher than a 5c at the end of year 6. Would it be possible to ask the head why they think there will be only 1 sub-level progress in these subject over 12 months? I would be looking at a 2 or 3 sublevel progress.... which would then boost your predictive grades.
Maturity can play a big part .....especially when taking the exam itself so is worth a mention especially in light of his 'faint incident 'but do not dwell on it.
I would think that mentioning his grandfather would not add anything to your case and may take away from the academic and the 'faint' on the first test.

Hopefully you will get a reply from one of our 'Bucks' specialists......they are very busy at the moment but please post back in the meantime with any other queries.

I agree with chad - why so little progress between year 5 and year 6? Will the school confirm that grandfather's death had an impact on school work, and are there letters from the GP, bereavement counsellor, etc., to substantiate the effect?

Reading age is very good.

Practice tests aren't usually considered to be evidence (and how were they standardised?).

Would changes to key staff at the start of year 6 have an effect on someone's reasoning ability in the space of a month or so?

Can the invigilator confirm in writing that DS felt faint?

The ability to work quickly as well as accurately is part of the test - it's what is required at grammar school.

I've probed possible weaknesses, but with a score of 119 there's around a 63% chance of success (less if the panel take the lower score into account).

Thank you so much for your advice, I was able to sift through and make a plan. I drove the appeal up to Aylesbury and handed it over with an immense sigh of relief. Big glass of wine this evening I think!

Hi,

Not been here for a while...(well a year)

my son had the exact same scores 115 then 119 and I managed to get him through the appeal. It seems at the time its going to be a uphill battle, but I can say that the panel were very nice...I was prepared, but I didnt take lots of things with me, some books, his music grade certs. I made sure that I had read my speech over and over and also gave them a copy so they could follow through.

I just wanted to give you hope etc, I know how youre feeling and how important it is.

Phil

Our appeal date is fast approaching on 2nd Feb. The parents of another pupil from the same class were interviewed today and have returned with new light shed on our yr 5 exam results and their credibility. Because we are at an independent school, our children didn’t take SATs but did NFER tests.
My son scored;
Reading 5c / 123
Writing 4c / 108
Maths 4a / 125

The panel will disregard these scores and the Head teachers predictions of 5’s for yr 6 because the was no compatibility with the SATS. Could you possibly help me with the credibility of our NFER exams? I have e-mailed the NFER help line but am not sure if they will have time to answer.
Also, do you know what the scores 123, 108, 125 are?

I am eager to submit my son’s practice papers because despite interruptions, disturbances and lack of answer sheets, he still did fairly well. At least they are an indication of attainment if the NFERs are not considered relevant.
I was wondering how to standardize them as I believe he is due an extra 4 marks due to his young age. (End of June 99). Do you add 4 marks onto the raw score of 70 out of 80 then work out the score out of 141? Or do you add the 4 marks on after when you have worked out the mark out of 141?
Hope this makes sense!!!
Thanks again in advance for your advice, I expect you are very busy at the moment.

I am eager to submit my son’s practice papers because despite interruptions, disturbances and lack of answer sheets, he still did fairly well. At least they are an indication of attainment if the NFERs are not considered relevant.

Panels often ask how the practice papers went, in which case you have to answer, but I'm afraid there's no way they'll give any weight to submitted papers or to the marks. The same papers are used year after year, and taken home, so they are insecure, and anyone could have had access to them beforehand.

I was wondering how to standardize them as I believe he is due an extra 4 marks due to his young age. (End of June 99). Do you add 4 marks onto the raw score of 70 out of 80 then work out the score out of 141? Or do you add the 4 marks on after when you have worked out the mark out of 141?

There is no standardisation for the practice papers, and I'm afraid no one is going to believe any figures you come up with. This would be a complete distraction, and do nothing to help your case.

The panel will disregard these scores and the Head teachers predictions of 5’s for yr 6 because the was no compatibility with the SATS.

We would need to know the exact words used. I could understand a degree of caution about predictions if the school is unfamiliar with SATs, but there is the evidence of the year 5 NFER curriculum tests. Even state schools use these tests, so I see no reason why they should be disregarded. Writing looks a bit borderline, but on the whole level 5 predictions for English and Maths seem reasonable enough.

Hope this helps.

Good luck!