11plus appeal HELP!

Consult our experts on 11 Plus appeals or any other type of school appeal

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alyson s

11plus appeal HELP!

Post by alyson s »

Hi , i hope you could advise me.Our son has scored 349(pass 353). We have sort advise and his teacher and head teacher are stunned he did not pass.They support us in our appeal which we would not attempt if we did not feel he was capable of Grammar school.He Has already scored 5 a's and 5b's, is in the top 5-10 of the country with his test scores, and has always had fantastic reports singing his praise's.We think he is a very bright boy.The head has expressed his wishes to accopany us to the appeal, but am am terrified!!He is a very sensetive boy , and is devasted that he did not pass.Any advise on how to approach the panel would be appreciated, i believe in being as honest as poss, but iam hopless when nervous and dont want to let my son down!!Thanks
Alyson s

Post by Alyson s »

I am not veryy good at putting things acorss well , as you have probably gathered!Ther seems to be a lot of conflicting info, i am finding the prospect very daunting!Any advice would be welcome.
laid back son worried mum
Posts: 4083
Joined: Wed Mar 07, 2007 1:18 am

Post by laid back son worried mum »

Hi, Alyson s,

It's very stressful fighting for our children. The preparation and the worry of the exams must be nothing now compared to the task ahead for you.

I am not an expert on Appeals and would just like to say I'm glad you've registered as there are many who would come and share their experience and give you some practical help very soon. Maybe you could post again in your own area as well in case someone there has some valuable advice to give you.

Please be patient and not think you've been forgotten. I wi11 be praying for you to have the strength and fortitude to get through this.

Best wishes.

LBSWM
DaveEhulme

Appeal

Post by DaveEhulme »

Allyson, we're all with you on this one so good luck.
Judging by the pass mark I suspect you are in Trafford and unfortunately that is a very quiet thread, with not a lot of appeal experience on display.
I would recommend a couple of things to you: firstly read Etiennes guidance on appeals (it has its' own tab on the left of the home page), no matter where you are the information is valid, and secondly ask the Head teacher if he might give you a "mock" appeal to try things out. Some heads have offered same in the past and I'm sure that it would help to take any rough edges and some of the nerves off.
Do you know when the appeal will be?

Good Luck,
DavEhulme
Guest

Post by Guest »

Thankyou davEhulme,

The headmaster has already offered to do just that.He is very supportive and wants to come to the appeal with us.I have just had a call and the appeall is going to be next week, the sooner the better for us all!! Thanks again, kindest regards Alyson
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Post by Guest55 »

Concentrate on academic evidence - 'hard working' is not enough - those NC levels are what matters.

We're all rooting for you!
Tom's mum
Posts: 49
Joined: Sun Aug 12, 2007 8:27 pm

Post by Tom's mum »

I was incredibly nervous about our son's appeal, not least because I had to face it alone as my husband had unavoidable commitments. Our son had strong support from the school, so we were able to place lots of emphasis on predicted level 5s, high reading age, etc. On the day I actually read from my typewritten 'script' (having explained that I was nervous in case I left anything out) and then answered questions honestly. I also left my 'script' with the clerk for their records. Incidentally, I am a primary school teacher so my nerves should have been sound because I knew we had a strong case - however, I have never heard my voice wobble so much or felt my knees knock quite so rapidly...

The panel were human, the experience was terrifying, but the result was what we wanted. Best of luck - don't worry about those nerves, the panel will have seen worse!
Sally-Anne
Posts: 9235
Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 8:10 pm
Location: Buckinghamshire

Post by Sally-Anne »

Anonymous wrote:The headmaster has already offered to do just that.He is very supportive and wants to come to the appeal with us.
Hi Alyson

I am sorry to hear that your son missed the pass mark by so few points. I don't know the Trafford area at all (if that is where you are) but the same rules really apply Country-wide for Appeals.

Please read Etienne's Appeals Q&A. The most important message is that you must stick to academic evidence. The only other evidence that will count is for outstanding extra-curricular activity, preferably with an academic bias, such as Chess, science competitions, etc.

The Head may not necessarily be familiar with your son's record personally. It would be great to think that he will do his research, and surely he will try, but you cannot count on it. Between now and the appeal try to see the form teacher to get an update yourself. Predicted SATs, attitude to work, particular academic strengths - any highlights that s/he can offer.

You will be nervous - all of us who have been to an Appeal were shaking in our boots! However, the Head will be there at your side, and that says a great deal for your son's case.

Take those stunning reports with you and tell the panel that you have them. If there is any other written evidence of his ability and potential, take that with you.

Have you been given any advice on what information to take with you, and how many copies to prepare?

As Tom's Mum says, a written script of what you want to say, with a copy for the Clerk to the Appeals panel is perfectly acceptable. I did the same thing, and I am sure that the panel did not think any less of me for it. They quite understand how nerve-wracking the process is.

If you are in control of all that it will prevent any dramas on the day that might wrong-foot you.

Please post back for any help we can provide.

Sally-Anne
Guest

Post by Guest »

Thanks to all for their kind and supportive advice!
Chorlton
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu Dec 06, 2007 12:07 pm

Uncanny ...

Post by Chorlton »

alyson s wrote:Hi , i hope you could advise me.Our son has scored 349(pass 353). We have sort advise and his teacher and head teacher are stunned he did not pass.They support us in our appeal which we would not attempt if we did not feel he was capable of Grammar school.He Has already scored 5 a's and 5b's, is in the top 5-10 of the country with his test scores, and has always had fantastic reports singing his praise's.We think he is a very bright boy.The head has expressed his wishes to accopany us to the appeal, but am am terrified!!He is a very sensetive boy , and is devasted that he did not pass.Any advise on how to approach the panel would be appreciated, i believe in being as honest as poss, but iam hopless when nervous and dont want to let my son down!!Thanks
Our son scored exactly the same! We had our appeal hearing yesterday morning, how I wish I'd come across this forum before!

Don't think it went well, but it's very hard to judge. The Trafford LEA rep was (I thought) excessively agressive, but the panel of 3 were fine (2 old ladies plus the chairperson who was more sympathetic).

We weren't comfortable going in claiming a dropped pencil, dead hamster, nosebleed etc that people seem to dream up. Rather, as you have (are you sure you're not my wife writing with a pseudonym?!),
we'd go in went with the approach that we honestly felt he didn't do himself justice, and being a little introspective was somewhat overwhelmed with the size of the venue and the number of kids. Children are not machines, and don't always perform consistently at the age of 10.

Again our head was kind enough to attend, and brought along some of his work, and his form teacher wrote a lovely "reference".

So why did we emerge feeling battered? It's an odd process for sure.

Let me know how your's went - will get the outcome next week I think.
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