Getting Stick?

doodles · Post by **doodles** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 8:37 pm

Whether the 11+ is right or wrong, whether it is an accurate test or not, we asked our children to take it and should be proud of what they have achieved.

Some children will brag, and it isn't nice, but children are children (remember the majority of them are only 10) and a lot of social graces come with age. It's the parents who should be more careful of what they say and how it comes across. Perhaps it is just a case of a few more old fashioned manners being needed. Respect for other people. Now that would be nice.

reginaphalangie · Post by **reginaphalangie** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 8:37 pm

Son didn't sit 11plus btw as he has had enough humiliation in life being permanently stuck in the C group of his 'outstanding' ( according to OFSTED lol!) primary school. No triangles or square groups..no, none of that in his school (not that it matters 'cos all kids know who are the bright ones) - straight A,B,C groups...nice

doodles · Post by **doodles** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 8:47 pm

Am going to retire from this one as am bound to upset somebody.

Reginaphalangie - sorry I didn't see your post before I sent my last one. But believe me or believe me not I do understand ... I really truly do understand what you mean.

reginaphalangie · Post by **reginaphalangie** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 8:50 pm

Thats cool doodles

SunlampVexesEel · Post by **SunlampVexesEel** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 8:50 pm

William Shakespear wrote:We wound our modesty and make foul the clearness of our deservings, when of ourselves we publish them

gogogirl · Post by **gogogirl** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 9:30 pm

Lass · Post by **Lass** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 10:16 pm

Gogogirl, I would say this is similar at our school. Obviously there has been playground talk but nothing mentioned within school to the children. And personally I think that's the way it should be. There appears to be an awful lots of children that have been only a couple of points away from passing, there has been a lot of upset with how and why HT has appealed for some and not others. I think the least made of it to the children, the better. In the same way, I understand it was all very low key approaching the tests and no big deal made of it.

As has been said before, there is a huge element of "luck on the day". If too much is made of "passing", then surely this must make it even harder on the ones that dont?

My DD did pass, and we are extremely proud of her. (However I'm sure I'd be equally as proud of her if she hadn't!). I do not feel she worked exceptionally hard towards it, and certainly over the summer we didn't push her to do papers. I understood the test to be about their natural ability and I'd hate to work my children hard in order to pass an exam and then watch them struggle in a school that goes at a pace too fast for them.

familyinthevalley · Post by **familyinthevalley** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 10:34 pm

My son has had one 'negative' from a fellow classmate. He was accused of obviously having cheated on the day, as he hadn't been tutored, how could he have passed? This came from a boy who has been severely tutored at great expense, did not pass, but has spent more time being suspended from school over the past five or six weeks than in school (due to behaviour issues - some of which is just down right nasty to individuals, and disruptive to his class). The rest of the kids were congratulating the ones who passed, and getting excited with those that didn't because now they would be applying to the school that the ones who didn't take it would go to. It was all rather positive actually. I haven't told my son his marks, he passed, that's all he needs to know as our first and second choice are based on distance/siblings etc., not points.
They had a 'celebration cake' in their class on the Friday of results - to celebrate the successes of the class as a whole.
Nothing but positive from parents.

gogogirl · Post by **gogogirl** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 10:47 pm

Lass Iagree that children should have the natural ability to pass and in our case were told by the class teacher that unless something went drastically wrong on the day then she was confident with her ability and should pass the test.
I also agree that there will always be an element of luck involved but I dont believe that it is a huge element but rather that the dc might on the day have a section on a type of question they grasp more easily.
We were not so lucky and dd had 2 full sections of hers and ours worst nightmare

ourmaminhavana · Post by **ourmaminhavana** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 11:44 pm

Sadly, however you look at it the 11 plus is divisive. This was brought home to me early on when another mother mentioned to me how upset her son was that he was not taking the 11 plus. He was very conscious of the fact that six students were being withdrawn to do practice papers with the Head and the rest of the class were not. The Head is a sensitive soul but the pupils did need to familiarise themselves with the tests. I hated the fact that our desire for our son to do well was distressing other children in the class and making them feel inadequate.
I think very little is being made of their success (all six passed) but I expect the others know.

Reginaphalangie I agree entirely that effort doesn't necessarily equate with success.