Highest grade possible

Bexley Mum 2 · Post by **Bexley Mum 2** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 4:31 pm

...because, it raises expectations and awareness of the need to challenge bright children. If level 6 papers existed, parents of very bright children would feel justified in asking their primary school if their child was working towards sitting the paper. As it is, schools can say they are "stretching a child sideways", when in reality they may just be leaving a child to coast at level 5 for a couple of years. I just think there should be a smoother progression throughout the key stages rather than a slowing down for some children in Y6 and then a speeding up again in KS3.

Bexley Mum 2 · Post by **Bexley Mum 2** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 4:34 pm

Katel - as I said, it's to force schools into doing something to stretch clever children rather than let them coast. If you heard my 10 year old say at the end of every school day that he's learnt nothing new or been given anything difficult to do, you might change your mind.

yoyo123 · Post by **yoyo123** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 4:39 pm

you don't fatten a pig by weighing it

BUT you do find out how much you need to feed it , whether you are feeding it the right thing and whether or not it is flourishing....

sj355 · Post by **sj355** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 4:51 pm

yoyo123 wrote:you don't fatten a pig by weighing it

BUT you do find out how much you need to feed it , whether you are feeding it the right thing and whether or not it is flourishing....

However in the case of SATS KS2 the pigs change barn almost immediatelly following these findings so it can be used only as a diagnostic instrument (of the efficacy of the old barn) as the feeding is now undertaken by someone else. I love allegories!

yoyo123 · Post by **yoyo123** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 6:04 pm

Tracy · Post by **Tracy** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 7:13 pm

Katel is also correct about parents wanting their kids to be a certain level to massage their own egos.

But a teacher of any sorts would be able to see which kids needed that bit extra from those who didn't.

noisyboysy · Post by **noisyboysy** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 1:48 pm

Some schools do use the KS3 SATs for yr 6. My friend's son did past papers (just to see what he could do). He quite happily achieved an 8 on the paper, using his own methods to work out what to do when he didn't have the knowledge. His end of year 6 level though was given as level 5.

gemini · Post by **gemini** » Fri May 22, 2009 10:41 am

My yr. 6 ds was given a past level 6 maths paper to do. He achieved a 6c. Does any one know what percentage that is ?
thanks.

T-4-2 · Post by **T-4-2** » Mon Jun 08, 2009 8:40 pm

Well it turns out that my DC (year 6) sat an optional year 7 maths SATs papers at school last week. My DC said it was fairly easy and got a 6a, but I don't know what the highest grade possible was. Guest55 do you know? Obviously I still don't know the grade achieved in the compulsory SATs sat in May.

Milla · Post by **Milla** » Mon Jun 08, 2009 9:06 pm

that sounds a great achievement, well done!
I've never taken the SATS particularly seriously, seeing it as a school thang and, since my eldest boy was feted for grammar, his taking it wasn't going to affect future streaming so it was one thing about which I refused to get stressy. (my oh-so-lucky sons.) Whether I'll change my tune come next year if my younger boy doesn't make GS remains to be seen ...

BUT, my older boy was always a bit shaky at maths at primary (he tended to assume it was going to be more difficult than it was and complicate things for himself and then mess up). When he arrived at GS, they did some sort of expected achievement thing whereby he was mooted to get 2 SATs grades higher come the end of Y9 than he had come in with. He arrived with a 5, so was projected a 7. Which he has attained this term (he's in Y7), giving him a leap of 2 levels in one school year, 8 real months.
See why I find them hard to take seriously??

Teaching and confidence have done the trick.