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dobbyagain
Posts: 26
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2007 11:39 am
Location: Bucks

We did our best

Post by dobbyagain »

Hello to all who remember us, I've not been able to post openly about our appeal as I believe we can be recognised by our circumstances. Today we had our appeal and I am so glad its over. Everyone here has helped so much and given us so much help and support. The problem so many of us have is should we appeal? I now know after our appeal that we did the right thing, it helped us to clarify our thinking and on the journey we dicovered that our son is bright (Ed psych's report), which we knew instinctively but now have more confidence about - he needs our support now whatever the outcome.
The appeal panel were very kind and were helping us with all their probing questions.
Whilst we now feel sick about the result at least we know we did our best and we can go home from work and give our son a great big hug and he will also know we did our best!
Dobbyagain.
Appeal Mum
Posts: 2049
Joined: Fri Mar 09, 2007 10:29 pm
Location: Wirral

Post by Appeal Mum »

Dobbyagain,

Glad to hear from you, I was wondering where you had gone.

Appeals are so emotionally draining and I can understand you not wanting to be recognised from your posts, but I'm very pleased you have surfaced again.

You have done all you can now, what will be, will be.
Let's hope it’s the news you want..

Sending you lots of positive thoughts..

AM
LiseCook
Posts: 17
Joined: Wed Jan 23, 2008 7:40 pm

Appeal Today

Post by LiseCook »

Dear Dobbyagain,

Good for you and I so hope you get the result you want. Could I ask what your Son's test results were for the 11+ and what kind of questions you were asked by the panel?

We are due to go on Tuesday and I am having many sleepless nights!!

Warm regards

Lise
mummalea01
Posts: 29
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2008 3:48 pm

Post by mummalea01 »

Good luck Dobbyagain. Know just what you mean about feeling all the life has been sucked out of you. All the best for the postman! :)
dobbyagain
Posts: 26
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2007 11:39 am
Location: Bucks

Our experience

Post by dobbyagain »

Lisecook,

Our son only got 116 and 114 - so we know we were on an outside wicket. Our mitigating circumstances are quite extensive and so this is how we approached it.

I did the academic evidence - we had great ed psychs report which put him above average in everything but with reading age of 15.10 and spelling of above the test ceiling etc, this made us feel able to appeal.

My husband laid out our mitigating circumstances (which I think may identify me so I don't want to go into them too much) The situation was supported by a letter from our social worker.

The questions we got were mostly about our circumstances about a change of school our son had in september and an earlier appeal for that transfer and the reasons for it. I felt they were trying to get as much info. from us as possible (good or bad? I don't know!)

Other questions were:

It is evident your son loves English and there is a lot of evidence to support his ahigh ability at this - his head teacher says he finds some concepts difficult to grasp, do you think this is a reliable interpretation?

I pointed out the ed psych's reults of 15.1 on the concept development test and one of the panel members pointed out his arithmetic score in the same report of 13 years, we reminded the panel that the heateacher had only known him 3 weeks before hte 11+ and she herself had said she didn't know him very well. we pointed out that he was in tops set and his reports showed him getting above average grades in those sets.


We also had the results for his reading and spelling age verified by a specialist teacher and they asked who she was. I explained how she had been reffered to us and why we had the tests done ( because the school had lost their results.)

The chair asked whether the head had opposed our other daughter going to the school - we were able to say that yes she had and had said she 'would not be able to cope with her' and that she had also opposed our son going to the school and had attended the appeal to do so. We also said about the head not allowing him to visit the school beforehand.


Another question was about whether we felt he would feel uncomfortable oin agrammar school where children discuss their results and he had a low score and where he wasn't top of the class.

I was a bit floored by this and just blurted out he wouldn't be at the bottom of the class because he's always been in top sets at a high perfroming school, my husband pointed out that he felt he had already had to comare his low results with his higher attaining siblings and had coped fine.

After feeling euphoric at it all being over I am now really questioning how it all went. Were all hate difficult questions to help us or were they to confirm the worst?

I'll let you know when we get the result as our answers may have been really off beam and at the end of the day it was such an outside shot.


If I remember anything else I'll jot it down.

Dobby
dobbyagain
Posts: 26
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2007 11:39 am
Location: Bucks

pretty bleak

Post by dobbyagain »

I forgot to say that the headteacher had only ranked our son as second 25% - so that was pretty AAAAgh he was ranked 4th and no one beneath him passed. the 3 above wree all in 130's!
Heigh ho.
Dobby
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Post by Etienne »

Dobby

For what it's worth, I'll give my reaction to your report on the hearing.
Another question was about whether we felt he would feel uncomfortable in a grammar school where children discuss their results and he had a low score
Rather a silly question, because there's no way it ought to determine the outcome of an appeal!
I am now really questioning how it all went. Were all the difficult questions to help us or were they to confirm the worst?
I'm satisfied from your report that they were genuinely trying to see if there are sufficient grounds to overturn the LA decision despite the low scores. You had some very good evidence for them to consider, and so there were a lot of probing questions (mostly very sensible ones!).

It would have been a finely balanced decision for the panel (good evidence versus low scores), and we shall have to wait and see what the outcome is, but I have absolutely no doubt that there was a lot of sympathy for your case. It's clear to me that you were extremely well prepared, and handled the questions brilliantly.

Last year only 29.2% of appeals with a score of 116 succeeded, and to make matters worse, in this instance the second score was 114. It's a tribute to you that I would put the odds at 50/50. Perhaps even 51/49 ........ :D

"Hope for the best ...... be prepared for the worst."
Etienne
dobbyagain
Posts: 26
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2007 11:39 am
Location: Bucks

We got our results

Post by dobbyagain »

Everyone,

Thank you so much for all your help. The appeal was successful and we are so delighted. The complicated stuff about our family can now begin to be resolved as there was so much riding on this. I haven't told my son yet because he's out so really excited to tell him.

I am aware of people who won't be having good news and I feel so much for everyone who's been through this awful time. Anyone who has been working on these cases and following this site has been through so much. we do it because we want whats best for our children and the whole group hug thing has really helped me at times when I have felt down. It's good to know we are not on our own. The gurus have been really spot on with all their advice and we are really grateful.

Thank you.

Dobby
camden
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon Nov 26, 2007 1:13 pm

Post by camden »

Hello Dobby!

Congratulations....fantastic news!!! Your positive outcome gives great hope to those like us who also feel that we're on an "outside wicket"!

As you say, thoughts too for those not so lucky - as sometimes it seems that luck and fate can play a big part in a judgement.

I think that those of us following posts on this fab site know very well that things can so easily go either way, and that all we can do is give it our best shot on behalf of our kids...at least we know we tried!!!
As somone esle posted not so long ago, with parents as supportive as we all are :wink: our kids will do well anywhere!

Best wishes,
Camden
LiseCook
Posts: 17
Joined: Wed Jan 23, 2008 7:40 pm

CONGRATULATIONS

Post by LiseCook »

Many, many congratulations to you and your son. Well done - extremely pleased for you. What a relief it must be knowing that his future is now secured at a Grammar School.....

Sending you warm regards and many, many congratulations!!!!

Lise
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