11 Plus Exams Forum

Hi all, Just wanted some advice. My dd scored 120, so we are planning to go for selection review. The headteacher has given her 2 for ability and 1 for attitude towards learning.In the progress chart he has also put down GDS for both Reading and Maths and EXS for writing.I wanted to find out whether we still need to include my dd's year 5 sats report along with the selection review sheet.

Another question- Her dad was away in another town from Jan to August because of unexpected changes in his work situation which caused dd some emotional distress during the crucial time of preparation. Would this be accepted as extenuating circumstance? As evidence of his absence he can get a letter from his employer.Thanks in advance everyone. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

mumsworld wrote:Hi all, Just wanted some advice. My dd scored 120, so we are planning to go for selection review. The headteacher has given her 2 for ability and 1 for attitude towards learning.In the progress chart he has also put down GDS for both Reading and Maths and EXS for writing.I wanted to find out whether we still need to include my dd's year 5 sats report along with the selection review sheet.

Another question- Her dad was away in another town from Jan to August because of unexpected changes in his work situation which caused dd some emotional distress during the crucial time of preparation. Would this be accepted as extenuating circumstance? As evidence of his absence he can get a letter from his employer.Thanks in advance everyone. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hi mumsworld. You'll get more and better responses if you start your own thread. I won't add my thoughts on this one because it will clutter it.

Could mods kindly split this thread? Many thanks

Extenuating circumstances only come into play if the academic case is strong and supports what should have been an expected qualification.

Forgive what might come across as blunt honesty, but I don't think your circumstances are extenuating. Many children will have experienced parental absence through work commitments and it would probably be considered part of normal life. You would also face a challenge to show that her father's absence adversely affected her school work over that period. You're caught in a bit of a trap there because the academic evidence you need to submit to show suitability for a grammar school needs to be strong, but you are then arguing that her father's absence had an effect on her emotions. Please make sure you avoid any mention of "crucial time of preparation". These tests are supposed to be tutor-proof (we all know they aren't) and no preparation is necessary (we all know that doesn't really work for most children) so the panel might consider that there was no preparation to be disrupted.

It's the academic case that needs to be strong. If it is, and it's allied to a good HT recommendation and a score of 120, you're on as good a footing as you can be.

What KS2 predictions is the Head giving? How did the other 2:1s get on?

Guest55 wrote:What KS2 predictions is the Head giving? How did the other 2:1s get on?

For Reading and Maths the prediction is 111-120. I don't know how the other 2:1s got on. I am new to all this and so have very limited knowledge about the whole process. Sorry if I sound a bit silly

anotherdad wrote:Extenuating circumstances only come into play if the academic case is strong and supports what should have been an expected qualification.

Forgive what might come across as blunt honesty, but I don't think your circumstances are extenuating. Many children will have experienced parental absence through work commitments and it would probably be considered part of normal life. You would also face a challenge to show that her father's absence adversely affected her school work over that period. You're caught in a bit of a trap there because the academic evidence you need to submit to show suitability for a grammar school needs to be strong, but you are then arguing that her father's absence had an effect on her emotions. Please make sure you avoid any mention of "crucial time of preparation". These tests are supposed to be tutor-proof (we all know they aren't) and no preparation is necessary (we all know that doesn't really work for most children) so the panel might consider that there was no preparation to be disrupted.

It's the academic case that needs to be strong. If it is, and it's allied to a good HT recommendation and a score of 120, you're on as good a footing as you can be.

Thanks for the response

mumsworld wrote:Hi all, Just wanted some advice. My dd scored 120, so we are planning to go for selection review. The headteacher has given her 2 for ability and 1 for attitude towards learning.In the progress chart he has also put down GDS for both Reading and Maths and EXS for writing.I wanted to find out whether we still need to include my dd's year 5 sats report along with the selection review sheet.

Another question- Her dad was away in another town from Jan to August because of unexpected changes in his work situation which caused dd some emotional distress during the crucial time of preparation. Would this be accepted as extenuating circumstance? As evidence of his absence he can get a letter from his employer.Thanks in advance everyone. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Wondering whether anyone could answer my first query......I wanted to find out whether we still need to include my dd's year 5 sats report along with the selection review sheet.Desperate for advice as we are planning to send the selection review form 2moro. Thanks a lot

Has the Head filled in all the boxes and written a comment about academic strengths?

There is no rush to get it in as long as you meet the deadline. No need to send the report - if there is additional evidence of academic strength then get the Head to add this to their comment.

Welcome to Appeals!

mumsworld wrote:he has also put down GDS for both Reading and Maths and EXS for writing.

Good!

I wanted to find out whether we still need to include my dd's year 5 sats report along with the selection review sheet.

Only if it adds something worthwhile. Does it say anything different to what the head has already put on the review form?

Another question- Her dad was away in another town from Jan to August because of unexpected changes in his work situation which caused dd some emotional distress during the crucial time of preparation. Would this be accepted as extenuating circumstance? As evidence of his absence he can get a letter from his employer.Thanks in advance everyone. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

We're a bit cautious about extenuating circumstances on here because too many parents focus on them instead of on the academic case.
Did she get the maximum possible attainment in each of reading, writing and maths at the end of Y5? If so, then, as anotherdad is pointing out, it would be rather difficult to argue simultaneously that her 11+ preparation was affected.
If not, you could argue that she would have performed even better in Y5 than she did!

Ideally, if there was emotional distress, the expectation is that if it was significant it ought to have been evident in school, and so the panel would probably like to see this confirmed by the headteacher.

However, having said all that, you need very little in the way of extenuating circumstances with a score of 120, and I would be inclined to include a letter from the employer. If the headteacher would say that he was "aware" of the situation, even better.