11+ appeal letter

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shaund
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun Dec 11, 2011 6:18 pm

11+ appeal letter

Post by shaund »

I wonder if any body would be so kind as to offer some comments

Many thanks


11+ Appeal for My Daughter
Character:
My Daughter in year 6 is a very driven, determined, articulate child who is very emotionally intelligent, confident & extremely passionate about doing well and giving her all in school.
However, to understand the speed of change in My Daughter academic ability, you should also be aware that she has been slow to mature, previously a shy child who lacked confidence.
School History:
***** Infant School
Throughout her time at ***** infant school, My Daughter demonstrated great flair for listening to the teachers and we were frequently applauded for her good nature, whilst reminded that My Daughter needed to participate more by putting her hand up in class. It transpired My Daughter was star struck by the teachers and her attention in class was devoted not to the lessons, but how the teachers conducted their lessons. She has her own classroom at home where she has taught school using the intonation and style of her current teacher since approx. year 1!
****** Juniors:
My Daughter quiet, shy character at ***** made her very liked but did not afford her the attention that a problem or overtly confident child may attract. On recognizing this I made it my job as her parent to engage with the teachers at ****** to get her the support she needed to grow in her academic ability, having recognized myself that she was a bright child.
On joining ****** her path to success began with Mr ***** who gave her some extra reading which opened My Daughter eyes to a whole new level of vocabulary which gained her house points in her school work therein developing My Daughter will & determination to succeed.
11+ Exam
My Daughter was the one who decided she wished to participate in the 11+ examination. We explained to her how difficult it was, having been through the exam with her older sibling & she insisted it was the path she wished to take because she wants to be a teacher.
On introducing My Daughter to the question types, we were astounded by how quickly she grasped the puzzle type questions as this had been a much more difficult journey with her older sibling.
We also recognized 2 things 1) My Daughter wasn’t an avid a reader at home and would have to broaden her vocabulary & 2) To complete the test within the time period her maths ability would have to be further improved.
On recommendation from a friend we downloaded ***** maths exercises to give My Daughter practice to allow her to build up confidence and speed. Before we began these papers, My Daughter could not even tell the time. Her improvement in maths at school is testament to the hard work My Daughter did to improve her ability.
In English, My Daughter has grown from reading genres such fairy stories and Horrible Henry to sometimes reading 2 books per week and enjoying Michael Morpurgo. This has enhanced her vocabulary & further developed her ability to critique a book, gaining her recognition in a recent piece of work on Macbeth in the Assembly at school.
11+ result.
Although we understand that we are not allowed to bring any test papers to school to demonstrate My Daughter performance in practice tests, we would like it noted that My Daughter developed an average pass rate of between 72 and 78 and we are very surprised at the result she achieved in the official tests.
My Daughter did so well in her practice papers and I have no answers as to why this did not happen on the day other than she may have became over confident and made some silly mistakes.
We do not believe that this is representative of her ability in verbal reasoning.
Home Background:
At the end of May 2011, I, My Daughter mother, changed employment. Through unfortunate circumstances I was dismissed from my previous job and faced a disciplinary hearing for choosing to take some of my old files, my employer deemed as their intellectual property, with me to my new job.
Having never been in trouble previously, this resulted in great stress for me and I was forced to seek medication to help me sleep and additional medicine for the nervous disposition created by the situation.
To exasperate matters further, my new employer failed to grant me flexible working hours, which had been a dependency for my acceptance of the role wuth them.
What did this mean for My Daughter?
This meant that my capacity to help My Daughter understand the 11+ papers became halted by my illness and my new job prevented me from getting home early to help her with practice papers. She was instead supported by her older sibling and her Dad but my knowledge of the papers was greater than his and so she was put at a disadvantage.

How did this affect My Daughter?
My Daughter showed herself to be a self starter with immense resilience, motivated by her goal to be a teacher, knowing she had to continue to realize this dream.
She timed herself doing tests and marked them before I got home so that we just had to go through any she had completed incorrectly
She also continued to apply herself to any school work with a will to do a great piece of work as opposed to just handing work in. Again, she was rewarded in School Assembly for this.
Her learning journey in the last year in particular has been phenomenal, made possible by having a goal in mind, but also reaching the level of maturity to find the personal aspects required to apply herself so completely. For My Daughter this even meant sacrificing her Saturday morning dance class to concentrate on her studies.
I believe these are the characteristics needed to succeed at a Grammar school and show My Daughter to be the self starter & determined character.
Sally-Anne
Posts: 9235
Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 8:10 pm
Location: Buckinghamshire

Re: 11+ APPEAL LETTER

Post by Sally-Anne »

Hi shaunD, and welcome!

We have edited out the names of the schools to safeguard your privacy.

Have you read the Appeals Q & As? http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appeals" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; If you glance at Section E, particularly point 11, there is an example of the type of thing that might be relevant to a panel.

In general terms, a parent's own assertions about the child's ability are not going to carry any weight. You need to provide as much firm evidence of her ability as you can.

What were her scores on both papers, in order? What is the Head's recommendation? How strongly is the school supporting your appeal? What are her predicted SATs levels for the end of Year 6?

Those are just some of the facts we need in order to be able to help you.

S-A
shaund
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun Dec 11, 2011 6:18 pm

Re: 11+ APPEAL LETTER

Post by shaund »

Dear Forum Member,

Thank you so much for your comments.
I agree that some of the information is based on opinion, but the progress in her ability and maturity are fact i.e her academic progress has been remarkable since her time at her Junior school - should we send copies of her reports or bring these on the day of the appeal?

Your other points:
My daughter was below the average, below 115.

The Head Teacher is fully supporting us in the appeal and has given my daughter his backing with a score of 3, which I believe means he thinks she will succeed but with some reservation.
Her expected Sats results are 5' for Maths and English.

All ofthe above information is in the letter and report submitted to the Appeals board.

In addition, we are preparing letters of recommendation from her teachers and extra curricular activities.
The letter we prepared was intended to give some credibility as to why we believe the results were not representative of her ability but can see your point and welcome any additional advice.
thank you once again
Sally-Anne
Posts: 9235
Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 8:10 pm
Location: Buckinghamshire

Re: 11+ APPEAL LETTER

Post by Sally-Anne »

shaund wrote:I agree that some of the information is based on opinion, but the progress in her ability and maturity are fact i.e her academic progress has been remarkable since her time at her Junior school - should we send copies of her reports or bring these on the day of the appeal?
It depends whether the opinion is yours or that of her teachers. The former will not carry any weight, the latter may well do, depending upon how much firm evidence there is. You should send copies of the reports in advance of the appeal. If I recall correctly, the reports at her school are not particularly lengthy.
My daughter was below the average, below 115.
You have a lot to prove on scores below 115, so you really must focus on the academic case. Extenuating circumstances will be more relevant the closer they were to the test. The fact that you were not able to spend time with her preparing for the test will not impress a panel as mitigating circumstances.
The Head Teacher is fully supporting us in the appeal and has given my daughter his backing with a score of 3, which I believe means he thinks she will succeed but with some reservation.
You need to know what that "reservation" is, because you will certainly be asked why it is a "3", and not higher. What is the second number - for attitude to work?
Her expected Sats results are 5' for Maths and English.
Most appeals will show Level 5s. If you can get the school to provide sub-levels, and they are 5a or 5b, they would help your case. Do you have any other evidence such as reading test results or CAT scores?
and extra curricular activities.
Unless these demonstrate academic ability - e.g. playing chess at a high level, or playing a musical instrument to a high level, they not relevant to the appeal. You may be asked about them if the panel can't think of any further questions but they want to appear polite, but I think your case will be all about academic evidence and why she did not achieve 121.
shaund
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun Dec 11, 2011 6:18 pm

Re: 11+ APPEAL LETTER

Post by shaund »

Thank you. You have given us some very sound advice to think about. :
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Re: 11+ APPEAL LETTER

Post by Etienne »

Very good advice from Sally-Anne.

And you would benefit from reading right through the Q&As, especially sections B & E, where many of these points are discussed.
Etienne
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