1st hurdle over, waiting for the next!

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littleloopy
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Feb 11, 2008 12:24 am
Location: South Bucks

1st hurdle over, waiting for the next!

Post by littleloopy »

Well, my knees have stopped shaking and my mouth is no longer as dry as a bone!!
We were pretty well prepared after reading posts on here and from talking to a few parents that have been through the experience themselves.

We managed to get over most of what we'd written down (although we are sure we missed a few things out! -hey, my brain doesn't work well under pressure!!) the panel asked a few questions; what does she do in her spare time? What books does she read? How did she find the practice papers? Was she coached? How did she feel on the day of the tests? How did she react when she found out she hadn't passed? Nothing too difficult to answer.

We left feeling like we had had a fair hearing and that there really wasn't anything else we should have done.

Now we are just playing the waiting game to see what sort of a letter arrives on our doorstep!

We didn't realise quite what this whole process had taken out of us until this evening when we both fell fast asleep on the sofa while the kids watched a DVD of Wurzel Gummage that we had bought for our own amusement!!! (the kids thought Wurzel was great by the way!!)

I am so relieved it is untrue. I will be starting now on my 6yr old to get him 'up to speed' so we don't have to do this again!!!!

Thank you SO much everyone for you tales and advice, I couldn't have compiled our case without you all.

Loopy
Mumsie
Posts: 10
Joined: Thu Feb 07, 2008 9:57 pm
Location: Bucks

Fingers crossed!

Post by Mumsie »

Littleloopy,

Now the waiting game.... hopefully you won't have to wait too long (maybe Saturday?) :roll:

Good luck to you and littleloopy, hope when the letter arrives it's good news!

Mumsie x
littleloopy
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Feb 11, 2008 12:24 am
Location: South Bucks

Post by littleloopy »

Thanks Mumsie,
DP said to me, when we were outside, that the worst thing about all of it, is that it is for your child, not for you. He was more shaken afterwards than he expected to be. He is used to pressure and big business meetings but this one really knocked him for six!
I feel good today, relieved even but I'm sure I will be a nervous wreck from tomorrow onwards, waiting for a letter!
Congratulations to you.
How did little Mumsie react when told?
If it's good news here, there will be massive hugs and floods of tears of relief!
If it's not good news it'll be a pile of chocolate and a box of tissues!!!

Little loopy
JustUnder
Posts: 16
Joined: Fri Dec 07, 2007 1:16 pm

Post by JustUnder »

littleloopy wrote:He is used to pressure and big business meetings but this one really knocked him for six!
I was exactly the same. I work in a City investment bank & have meetings at work every day with 15+ people of all levels in our business up to MDs and never get anywhere near as nervous as I did on the appeal hearing.

The pressure is immense when you're thinking that the future of your children is at stake in that one meeting.
littleloopy
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Feb 11, 2008 12:24 am
Location: South Bucks

Post by littleloopy »

Big business has nothing on your children's future!!
I think DP was slightly humbled by the experience. I don't think he realised that he would feel so emotional over it all. I am the one that deals with the school side of our lives as he works all the hours of daylight! He thought it would be simple to present a few facts to a panel ..... how wrong he was!!
Mum -1, Dad -0!!!!
Road Runner
Posts: 410
Joined: Thu Sep 14, 2006 8:32 pm

Mel x

Post by Road Runner »

Hi everyone

It just shows that anything related to children can really bring you together as a team. I am sure it is a real eye opener to alot of DH's/DP's.

Little Loopey I do hope you get news.


Mel
wraysburymum
Posts: 68
Joined: Mon Nov 12, 2007 12:54 am
Location: wraysbury, middlesex

11+ v School Exams

Post by wraysburymum »

All this made me think. Trying to convince a panel that your offspring just didn't perform on the day can look like "offspring not cut out for grammar school" as test not up to scratch. If that's the case, how come they changed the GCE/GCSE format from two years work and a test at the end, to two years assessed coursework and a test (contributing to the grade) at the end?
The old system suited me (no pressure/future not grade-dependent), but my friends were totally stressed to the point of anorexia! Surely the process was changed because too many very bright kids didn't get the results that they deserved, so they changed the system!
Do you think they will ever realise that too many factors influence a one-off test? Age of child compared to peers, pressure from family/school/self, amount (money and time) of coaching input above the supposed requirement, family problems, health problems etc.
Might it not be fairer to have the high-flyer 141's assessed with their course-work to see if their test result wasn't a fluke? Surely children at grammar school will be judged on school work rather than the ability to spot a rotated shape or a pattern of increasing numbers? And as is so often mentioned, children who get through on appeal tend to do better than most at grammar than a lot of children passing with very high grades, who then struggle with the workload.
But until then, here we are going through the system hoping that the appeal process rights the wrongs from bad test days!
To everyone waiting, the very best of luck :)
wraysburymum
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Post by Guest55 »

Coursework is going out again at GCSE - current Y8s will face different syllabuses.

However I do agree that there is too much focus on the 11+ which, being VR, does not even discriminate well for those with high Maths/Science ability.
littleloopy
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Feb 11, 2008 12:24 am
Location: South Bucks

Post by littleloopy »

Hi Wraysburymum and Guest55,
We pointed out our DD's high Quantative (maths) scores in her CATS and the panel asked if they were in anyway comparable to an 11+pass but the LEA said you couldn't compare the two (which I fully understand) but the panel then said that doesn't the scores DD got prove that she mathmatically gifted? The LEA had to say yes!

The VR test doesn't suit everyone. I would have thought a mixture of the three assessments (VR,NVR and Quantative) would be a much more reliable way to go but who am I to comment on the 'powers that be'?!!! :wink:

I am just a humble 'parent in waiting' that is trying to keep her emotions under control!
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