11 Plus Exams Forum

If my DC does the practice papers of the SATs Level 6 Maths and English, what mark would class as a Level 6 pass?

Have a look here - and you'll find the grade boundaries too.

Thanks for the quick response Okanagan, just what I was looking for!

The maths paper was not hard enough to be equivalent to a KS3 level 6. The pupils I've come across have been taught inefficient methods to tackle the paper.

I hate the fact it has come back and do not understand why Primary school cannot teach the whole of level 5 first!!!

By the way they are called the KS2 tests.

Best to view the test as exceptional primary performance. Then everyone can be happy. The papers are written to find the real high attainers. The standard setting procedure involved a lot of teachers from primary, middle and secondary schools and all agreed that the threshold was correct for a borderline case.

The paper was sufficiently challenging. I have asked a great many maths educationalists. While they may not like the title of level 6, they all agree that the paper was sufficiently challenging to warrant giving the level.

This is part of my current research and has been extremely interesting.

Interestingly, a middle school gave the paper to its solid level 6 children and significantly fewer of them scored level 6 on the primary paper than on the secondary equivalent.

The aim of the paper is to find the children with some real flair. The name is incorrect rather than the paper.

About how many children got a Level 6 last year, does anyone know? As a percentage of all Year 6ers I mean.

Long Journey, I believe not all schools participate in children taking the Level 6 papers, so I can't see their being any 'real' data available. However, the Level 6 papers are supposed to identify the top 1%.

Thank you Pumpkin Pie, that is helpful. I was just wondering what kind of attainment it suggests.

Question for moved and anyone else too!

Should we as parents really be getting involved in doing extra prep for level 6 papers when we are tolds our DC's are being entered? Is there any real benefit in getting a level 6 rather than say a 5a for the child? Don't the secondary schools do their own tests at the start of year 7 to decide how to steam and place the kids?

Moved - NONE of the Secondary teachers or local experts I've spoken to think the paper was level 6 - the questions were too scaffolded.

Please PM me links to your evidence - I agree it should be called level 5*.