11 Plus Exams Forum

The other day I was told by a council official in my area that his children would probably not have passed without extra coaching because it teaches them the techniques needed for success. He strongly recommended one hour a week of 11 plus tuition as "it is no longer a level playing field" because private schools do offer coaching per se. The same council is reforming the exam to make it supposedly tutor proof. Isn't it time that state primaries offered children more coaching/tuition for this tough exam than refusing on ideological grounds.

No, they should improve their schools. Also this officer is talking about the old exam ... It will probably be true of the new exam too though. It will never be possible for a school or a testing systems to completely level a playing field.

It's the same old chestnut, time versus money. You dont have to pay a tutor, you can invest the time and do it yourself as many many members of this forum do. If you want coaching done in school time then you need to pay for a prep school. I don't know any state schools that offer any help at all with prep for exams. DG

i know some schools do offer coaching in the lead up to the exams. although not free and not in school time they do offer a group tuition with a private tutor after school hours but on school property!
I am not sure i do approve of this, howeveri do think it is time the primary schools offered more advice on realistic expectations and suitable schools. When i asked at end of year 4 whether it was reasonable to have aspirations for a specific partially selective school locally i was simply told that it was up to me and they didnt give advice!
I went with my gut instinct and she did well in the exams and we are hoping for good news on march 1st, but some parents were very surprised by their childs results and have had to completely rethink their choices due to very unrealistic expectations

I know a primary school that does 11+ work (and we have CEM papers already here in Warwickshire) as part of year 6 work, weekly. This is mainly because if your dc does not get to the gs, the alternative catchment school has a poor reputation.

Our school flatly refuses to do anything (although one teacher was definitely giving the dc clozes to do, as literacy, for the week of the exam).

I don't think schools should help.

No, they should only help in the general sense of improving a child's general literacy and numeracy, and sitting a test.

Even if they did help it wouldn't "level the playing field" as some schools will still give better help than others, just as some families provide a better educational background than others, and some tutors are better than others, and some independents do practice papers and others don't.

Wasn't the original concept of grammar schools that they should offer a good education for bright children irrespective of their financial background, so children from poor families could still have the same opportunities as those from wealthier backgrounds? But if some schools are now offering private classes for those that can afford to pay and private schools are offering 11 plus preparation while state primaries do not, isn't the original grammar concept undermined? Exam coaching is clearly now needed to boost the chances of success but it is still out of the reach for some families. The state primaries should offer it for nothing.

The state primaries should offer it for nothing.

In Buckinghamshire (and elsewhere?) the headteachers have to undertake not to provide 11 plus help, so they are not allowed to do so.

crashtestdummy wrote:Isn't it time that state primaries offered children more coaching/tuition for this tough exam than refusing on ideological grounds.

Absolutely not.

crashtestdummy wrote: Exam coaching is clearly now needed to boost the chances of success but it is still out of the reach for some families.

It was out of the reach for me, but mine still passed! So sorry crashtestdummy, I have to disagree with this statement!