Kent test appeal - home schooled

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sarahw
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 11:22 pm
Location: Sandwich, Kent

Kent test appeal - home schooled

Post by sarahw »

My daughter has been home schooled since Oct 07, her school inform me that they have thrown her books away!! What evidence can i supply for the appeal - home schooled do not have the same luxury of a head teacher appeal.
My daughter had to take the test 60 miles away from our home, we had to get up at 5.30am, she was in unfamiliar surroundings and the only child from our area, she sat 4 tests in 1 day when pupils at her old school took them over a 2 day period, she also missed the Dover Girls Grammar test as the date was the same day as the 11+, KCC informed me that they had no alternative dates, all her friends from school took both tests,are these good enough reasons to appeal as her scores were 115, 109, 107?
and i think they were affected by the above.
Please help.....
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Post by Etienne »

Dear sarahw

The rule of thumb is: the further away from the pass mark, the stronger your case needs to be.

You do appear to have extenuating circumstances.

For academic evidence, I suggest level 3s at KS1, some excellent school reports, and an ed. psych. report that shows very high ability. See Q&As, B3.

Regards
Etienne
sarahw
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 11:22 pm
Location: Sandwich, Kent

11+ Appeals

Post by sarahw »

Ettienne, Thank You for your help regarding this. I am unable to afford to pay for a report to be done for my daughter as i have limited income due to the fact i am home schooling. Will the panel see me in a bad light if i fail to supply a report? I have Year 4 and 5 school reports for my daughter which show her SAT's results in year 5 to be Maths 3A, English 4B with a reading age of 11.03. The teacher has stated on the report that her maths is "slightly above average for her age" . And in english "she has proven to be an extremely capable child in this subject".
He also stated " Her results were excellent considering the fact that she had to sit a number of exams in a very short space of time due to her being on holiday and indeed completing these exams with a broken arm".
De Ja Vu..........
I appreciate any help as i am on my own with this home schooling system.
Thank you again..
capers123
Posts: 1865
Joined: Sun May 13, 2007 9:03 pm
Location: Gloucestershire

Re: 11+ Appeals

Post by capers123 »

sarahw wrote: I have Year 4 and 5 school reports for my daughter which show her SAT's results in year 5 to be Maths 3A, English 4B with a reading age of 11.03. The teacher has stated on the report that her maths is "slightly above average for her age" . And in english "she has proven to be an extremely capable child in this subject".
He also stated " Her results were excellent considering the fact that she had to sit a number of exams in a very short space of time due to her being on holiday and indeed completing these exams with a broken arm".
De Ja Vu..........
I appreciate any help as i am on my own with this home schooling system.
Thank you again..
Hmmm. No i wouldn't expect to see an ed psych report for a child - i see only one or two per year but then most can give up to date information from the school instead.

My panel would be interested in the reading age of 11.03 at year 5 - that is a little above average but only by 1 year (and also not affected by a broken arm). Many children who are appealing have RA's of at least 12 - I know of two children who had reading ages of 12+ in year 3, and that's not very unusual. I'd also be expecting to see SATS for Y5 of at least 4b all round as I'd also be expecting them to be predicted at at least 5c or above in Y6.

I'd also wonder about seeing 'slightly above average'. I'd also be wondering if taking your child on holiday during term time, especially SATS week, showed commitment (my childrens school will not authorise leave in that week for any child) and if allowing a different persons appeal might be better if they were less likely to take time off for holidays.

Now before you shout at me, it could well be that you were working a pattern where you had to take your holidays when allocated, so point that out to the panel if true. You could also point out you are so committed that you've stopped working so you can home educate.
Capers
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Post by Etienne »

I'm afraid EP reports are expensive (and of course they may not give you the results you want).

It's not that the panel will see you in a bad light, I suspect it's just that they won't have enough academic evidence to go on.

I would be looking for at least level 4s in year 5 optional SATs, and for a reading age of around two years above chronological.
Etienne
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