Appeal Query 116 & 118 (Bucks)

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lulu1408
Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2010 1:50 pm

Appeal Query 116 & 118 (Bucks)

Post by lulu1408 »

Our son scored 116 and 118, which was a shock as 2 children he often works with (and academically competes with) in class passed. He is a bright child and his headteacher gave him a 1:3 score (with the lower score of 3 based on his behaviour in class). His behaviour has deteriorated in school over the last 9 months which we can only attribute to emotional stress caused by marital difficulties my husband and I have been going through, to an extent that we have had to move house and seek marriage counselling to try and work through our problems. I am concerned that the disruption at home may have caused him to under-perform (his younger sister seems to be coping with the situation). His predicted SAT scores are 5Bs in Maths, English and Science. He has a reading and spelling age of 13+ and his headteacher strongly believes that he is capable of coping in an academically challenging environment and has recommended that we appeal. Is this wise? We are just coming to terms with the results and, although we would love for him to attend the local grammar school close to us, I am a bit wary of going through the emotional stress of facing an appeal panel after what we are going through only to be disappointed. That said, I am thinking of his future and therefore prepared to guide and help him as much as I can as his parent. Any help and advice would be gratefully accepted.
Thanks
Last edited by lulu1408 on Tue Nov 30, 2010 4:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
tiredmum
Posts: 1161
Joined: Sun Nov 01, 2009 2:51 am

Re: Appeal query

Post by tiredmum »

hi
go to he Q&A's at the top of the appeals forum and scroll down to lots of info about the bucks area
or click this
http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/11plus ... nswers.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
- some example cases as well. With 118 i have just learnt you have a 50% chance of having a succesful appeal - think this must be based on past statistics but it is all there in the Q&A's :) Experts will be along in a bit - very busy time of year for them
lulu1408
Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2010 1:50 pm

Re: Appeal query

Post by lulu1408 »

Thanks for your quick response. I am going through the forum and Q&A section. I wish I had come across this website earlier! There is so much information and advice.
thefirs
Posts: 90
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2010 2:41 pm

Re: Appeal query

Post by thefirs »

hi i have the same problem with the 3 - somehow you have to say they r capable of more, but also saying they are independantly driven?? how i dont know, i have the same problem
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Re: Appeal Query 116 & 118

Post by Etienne »

lulu1408 wrote: He is a bright child and his headteacher gave him a 1:3 score (with the lower score of 3 based on his behaviour in class).
I wouldn't worry too much about the '3' (not least because you have an explanation).
His predicted SAT scores are 5Bs in Maths, English and Science.
Good - but there may be some difficulty explaining why he is doing so well (in the light of family circumstances).
He has a reading and spelling age of 13+ and his headteacher strongly believes that he is capable of coping in an academically challenging environment and has recommended that we appeal. Is this wise? We are just coming to terms with the results and, although we would love for him to attend the local grammar school close to us, I am a bit wary of going through the emotional stress of facing an appeal panel after what we are going through only to be disappointed.
I cannot pretend that it won't be stressful or offer any guarantee of success (appeals are unpredictable!), but with a score of 118 I really think you should try to keep all your options open and go for an appeal.
Etienne
lulu1408
Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2010 1:50 pm

Re: Appeal Query 116 & 118

Post by lulu1408 »

Thank you all for your posts which are really supportive and beneficial.

Etienne, the only possible reason I can think of for his performance based on his SATs predictions, as you've pointed out, are because we moved into our new house just the weekend before his first 11+ paper (stupid decision with hindsight) and the disruption may have caused his concentration span to wander. I must stress that the circumstances were really dire for us to have contemplated the move. Would we need to present evidence of this?

How would you advise parents in our situation to respond if such a question was presented to us?
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Re: Appeal Query 116 & 118

Post by Etienne »

we moved into our new house just the weekend before his first 11+ paper (stupid decision with hindsight) and the disruption may have caused his concentration span to wander. I must stress that the circumstances were really dire for us to have contemplated the move.
This is what you need to tell the panel.
Would we need to present evidence of this?
Impossible, of course, to prove the impact on your son, but if you have evidence of the date of the house move (so close to the test), or a letter inviting you to marriage counselling, do submit it.
Etienne
lulu1408
Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2010 1:50 pm

Re: Appeal Query 116 & 118

Post by lulu1408 »

I have put together a letter of appeal and I wonder whether you can help me?
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Re: Appeal Query 116 & 118

Post by Etienne »

Hi Lulu

Depends what you want to know. There aren't enough hours in the day for us to deal with requests from everyone along the lines "Here is my letter - what do you think?", but we usually try to answer any specific questions.

I've never taken the view that the letter itself is all that important. What matters is the evidence, and what is said at the hearing.
Etienne
lulu1408
Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2010 1:50 pm

Re: Appeal Query 116 & 118 (Bucks)

Post by lulu1408 »

Dear all

Based on my DS class teacher's end of year report, they rank him positively academically but behaviour-wise, it's mainly negative. I have gone through his Year 5 report and can pick out 15 positives out of 5 negatives, summarily that he responds well to feedback, is versatile, naturally able, an independent worker who's confident in maths, a contributor, team player, can create and use a database in IT etc.... the negatives suggest that he struggles with imagination (creative writing), does not have a regular reading book (been working on this), easily distracted, inconsistent in science and at times disruptive. We still haven't submitted his school report due to this negative feedback because we feel it will work against him. He is a deep thinker and very intelligent though requires constant stimulation and routine.

I hate to impose and appreciate any feedback I can get. The sad thing is that I did not come across this website sooner. The information including the forum has been invaluable and can not thank everyone enough for your frank contribution and opinions. Thanks and I will definitely respond with my outcome.

Everything happens for a reason and as I have another one yet to go through this harrowing journey in 1 year's time, I now know where to look for guidance :-)
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