Kent Private schools caught 11+ coaching

[Woodham]

Of course private schools teach to the test.

This is rather sweeping. Not all private schools teach to the test. DD's independent didn't, they actively discouraged it, possibly as they had their own senior school they wanted the girls to progress to.

Agree. That's quite a general statement! If a prep school has a senior school attached such as Eltham College in Mottingham (prep school attached for boys aged 7-11) or Colfe's School in Lee (prep school attached for children aged 3-11), they generally won't teach for the 11-plus .........why would they want to lose customers/income?

Usually, only prep schools without a senior school attached that end at Year 6 teach for the 11-plus.

[LocalTWmum1]

Of course private schools teach to the test.

This is rather sweeping. Not all private schools teach to the test. DD's independent didn't, they actively discouraged it, possibly as they had their own senior school they wanted the girls to progress to.

Agree. That's quite a general statement! If a prep school has a senior school attached such as Eltham College in Mottingham (prep school attached for boys aged 7-11) or Colfes School in Lee (prep school attached for children aged 3-11), they'll generally won't teach for the 11-plus .........why would they want to lose customers/income?

Usually, only prep schools without a senior school attached that end at Year 6 teach for the 11-plus.

Where did I say ALL private schools teach to the test? The vast majority do as the BBC report found out. My own personal experience backs this up - a couple of years ago we took our two younger children to look round three local prep schools with a view to moving them in Y7 to a local grammar. Each of these schools had children up to Y9. The headteacher of each was quite open about the fact that if parents request 11+ coaching, then that is what they will provide. It might not be every independent school providing it to every pupil, but they will satisfy the demand if it is there via focused 11+ holiday clubs or classes before, during or after school...

[lapindebois]

I can't believe the BBC is reporting this as 'news'!! All of the preps focus on teaching either to the 11+ or to independent entrance exams at 11 or 13, or a combination of all three - unless they're all-through schools. With regard to state schools being allowed to teach to the test, surely the issue is more one of resource than anything else. Who the heck is supposed to coach state school kids through the 11+? If it's done by a Y5 teacher during curriculum time, then that's directly detrimental to the Y5 children who aren't sitting the 11+ and should be focusing purely on the KS2 curriculum. And if 11+ prep is going to be taught outside of scheduled curriculum time (e.g. in an after school club or by an additional teacher) - then where on earth is that funding going to come from, when schools have zero money? Let's face up to it - the 11+ is a crap system, and money (whether for tutors or for private schooling) is always going to buy advantage.

[Exams2018]

We are in bromley. There are atleast 2 prep schools here that are 11plus factories. One of them recently slipped in ofsted ratings (to “requires improvement”) but still I know atleast 2 parents who moved their kids there. Children got 100 VR and NVR questions a day as “homework” in year3. The other school covered ALL cgp books and did GL paper in school.

How do State school pupils ever stand a chance? In my opinion, every comprehensive school should have a grammar stream. There are so many bright children in my DDs class who are not doing 11plus.

[LocalTWmum1]

Looks like KCC have now confirmed that there will be a formal review on this issue:

"There will be a review but we don't have any dates or timings for discussions, debates, decisions, as this has only been decided since [council leader] Paul Carter expressed his opinion to [the BBC] yesterday."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-45412252

[PettswoodFiona]

Of course private schools teach to the test.

Where did I say ALL private schools teach to the test? The vast majority do as the BBC report found out. My own personal experience backs this up - a couple of years ago we took our two younger children to look round three local prep schools with a view to moving them in Y7 to a local grammar. Each of these schools had children up to Y9. The headteacher of each was quite open about the fact that if parents request 11+ coaching, then that is what they will provide. It might not be every independent school providing it to every pupil, but they will satisfy the demand if it is there via focused 11+ holiday clubs or classes before, during or after school...

You said that "of course private schools teach to the test" you didn't say some private schools so by stating private schools as a sector the inference is you mean all. You may not have meant all but that is how it read. I have also found the definition of teaching to benefit for the test a subjective one, some parents considered that as my daughter was being taught Y7 maths in Y6 she was getting an advantage and it may have gone down as teaching to the test but it wasn't anything to do with the test, just her level of maths. An advantage maybe but one that happens in state schools too and is not the preserve of independent schools but is often overlooked in state schools as being seen as an advantage as (people will know well from this forum) people love to hate independent schools (and sometimes grammars too). Common Entrance - going from a private school at end of Y8 to another independent at Y9 is a totally different scenario.

My father was the generation where everyone sat a grammar test and that is part of where we seem to get the angst of the top table, those on the top table were given extra help to pass the grammar entrance tests. Practically every school including his inner city state school did grammar tuition to some degree. It made it fairer to families like his that couldn't afford the tuition, by banning it in schools the poor families wouldn't have had the same advantage but it was recognized that so few would actually take up the places as the cost of two years extra education (i.e. not earning) wasn't something many families (like my Dad who passed but didn't take up his place) could afford. No system is perfect it seems.

[mystery]

Looks like KCC have now confirmed that there will be a formal review on this issue:

"There will be a review but we don't have any dates or timings for discussions, debates, decisions, as this has only been decided since [council leader] Paul Carter expressed his opinion to [the BBC] yesterday."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-45412252

That's pretty funny.. He clearly spoke without thinking to the BBC. It's not that many years since the lead councillors at KCC were claiming that this (not so) new 11 plus test from GL assesssment is tutor proof.

[Guest55]

Private schools in Bucks have to stick to the rules if they want their students to sit the test in their own school.

[Exams2018]

Private schools in Bucks have to stick to the rules if they want their students to sit the test in their own school.

Banking on people's integrity makes it very unfair. A lot can slip under the radar! Private schools have vested interests in exam results.

[PettswoodFiona]

Private schools in Bucks have to stick to the rules if they want their students to sit the test in their own school.

Banking on people's integrity makes it very unfair. A lot can slip under the radar! Private schools have vested interests in exam results.

And so increasingly do state schools have a vested interest. Numerous FoI requests now result in tables of information available to parents to show which schools had the highest 11+ pass rate and regardless of the fact that most of the work was done out of the school, parents will look favourably on the school and it then becomes desirable by the invested parent who took the time to look this up and the invested parent is the one that reads to their children in the evening etc and it contributes to a trend for the school to become one that does ever better for both SATs and 11+.