24 hours notice of test!

Eleven Plus (11+) in Buckinghamshire (Bucks)

Moderators: Section Moderators, Forum Moderators

Post Reply
Guest1960

24 hours notice of test!

Post by Guest1960 »

I have been helping a friend's son to prepare for the 11+ as an out-county applicant (we live just outside the county boundary). His primary school is happy to invigilate the exam for him and one other child (there is a handful of applicants each year). His parents and teacher have been trying to find out the proposed dates of the tests for several weeks now, but have not managed to get any specific information.

I have just heard that the school received the documents yesterday with instructions for the candidates to sit the test TODAY and Thursday! My friend's son was a bit thrown by this sudden turn of events but hopefully will give it his best shot.

However, it all strikes me as terribly disorganized - surely BCC would have planned these test dates weeks ago and could easily have disclosed them in response to enquiries? I know of at least one other person who yesterday morning still had no idea when her daughter would be sitting the test.

Has anyone else experienced this?
patricia
Posts: 2803
Joined: Mon Jan 30, 2006 5:07 pm

Post by patricia »

Dear Guest1960

See following link, out of county children normally take their tests during half term. Did your friend arrange for the school to invigilate the tests?

http://www.buckscc.gov.uk/schools/docum" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... _dates.pdf

Patricia
Guest1960

Post by Guest1960 »

Thanks for your reply Patricia.

Yes, the primary school is happy to invigilate the test - my daughter and one other child in her class did it there three years ago and I think the fact that she was in a familiar environment helped a lot. My friend's son could have taken the test at the centre in Aylesbury during half term but chose to accept the school's offer to invigilate, for much the same reason as we did. However, we had about three weeks' notice of the dates and so were able to prepare accordingly (including through half-term! The school also appreciated being able to plan the tests into their schedule. This year the whole thing seems to have been rushed through at the last minute despite all the forms having been submitted in plenty of time!

Some might argue that not knowing the test date is a good thing since it gives you less time to panic, however I think it was a bit unfair to simply spring it on him in this way. I don't think the school received so much as a phone call to say the papers were on their way!

Regards
Guest1960

Post by Guest1960 »

Sorry - it turned out that the tests were actually Wednesday (yesterday) and Friday. Even so, there was still very little notice and the staff at the primary school were instructed to hold the tests at a specific time on those days, unlike in the past when they have been given several weeks notice and asked to arrange them at their own convenience by a certain deadline. I wonder if perhaps BCC is trying to crack down on out-of-catchment applications? Just a thought.
Guest

Post by Guest »

My son sat the tests at his out-of-county school and it was entirely up to the school when they did them (for which they consulted us and the few other parents invovled). Well, there was some deadline for them to be marked in time for initial results day, but basically, we chose the day.
WOBW
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri Oct 13, 2006 1:20 pm

Out of Bucks schools

Post by WOBW »

We were told by our 'out of Bucks' school that we might only get 24 hour notice. I actually enquired about this with the Bucks admission team and they assured me that they just send the papers to these schools and the headteachers of the school decides when to administer the test. The Bucks is only asking them to send the papers back to them by 27/10/06.

I noticed that the schools outside the Bucks (even when they have been administering theses for years) don't really know what they are supposed to be doing. Do they not get any information booklet?
oldster

Post by oldster »

I have to say that if this is true then surely it is a system open to abuse?

My oldest child sat her 11+ in 2001 and at that time had a tutor who was a teacher in another county. She offered to include the 11+ in her tutoring which I jumped at as they had built up a good working relationship.

This teacher told me that some of the children in her school had seen the test before they sat it - obviously this is hearsay and I did not particularly believe it at the time.

However, this thread has begun to make me think.
Guest

Post by Guest »

If any children see the test in advance, obviously that is very wrong. However, I would question how much use it would be to them. Everyone knows what types of questions are covered and it's not as if they could memorise the answers. Laying aside (im)morality, the risk would be if any schools gave children extra time while actually doing the test.
Guest1960

Re: Out of Bucks schools

Post by Guest1960 »

jobyjish wrote:I noticed that the schools outside the Bucks (even when they have been administering theses for years) don't really know what they are supposed to be doing. Do they not get any information booklet?
The school is under no obligation to invigilate these tests, it merely does so as a favour to parents for which I shall be forever grateful! Having said that, since it is so close to the county boundary there is always a possibility that some of its own pupils might live in Bucks so presumably then there might be some duty to hold the test for these pupils, but not otherwise. There is certainly no advertisement of the fact that this happens - parents tend to find out about the option mainly through word-of-mouth (as was the case with us a number of years ago). The apparent fluidity of catchment areas across Bucks county boundaries (e.g. Berks, Oxfordshire, Herts etc.) does not seem to apply in the north of the county!
Post Reply
11 Plus Mocks - Practise the real exam experience - Book Now