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Passed yet failed?

Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 11:28 pm
by pluto1
My Child has achieved a good pass for their chosen Grammar School, but still does not have a place. My child was one mark below the final succesful child to be admitted and the places are now all allocated. We are very high on the waiting list, but will appeal for an over subscribed school. Any considered advice on this process would be welcomed.

Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 8:12 am
by Etienne
Dear pluto

Have a look at:
http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/11plus ... #section-C

Especially C2.

Good luck

Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 9:02 am
by pluto1
Thanks etienne. My DD only seems to hit the educational aspect of C2. We have been offered a decent local comprehensive school, but it is not a science college, which the grammar school is, and science is where my DD's talents and interests lie. Our child is predicted high 5's in English, Science and Maths SAT's and we have an excellent letter of support from school, which covers personality, attitude and academic abilities well. Our child passed the 11+ with "Flying colours," and is high on the waiting list, but ofcourse could yet fall back. Having read your Q&A section, I am anxious to avoid the cliche's, but I would really appreciate any advice, and in particular, what evidence to present; For example head master's achievement awards? Would this type of thing carry any weight? I would also like any advice on whether to produce any of DD's science books, etc. to help prove our case?
Secondly, the best approach seems to be that we have to argue why an extra place should be allocated. Is there any mileage in considering a non-qualification type arguement on the basis that DD passed the 11+ well but not well enough? It seems an odd question as DD passed, but as DD was 1 mark short, is there any relevance in this arguement?
Finally, DD would have qualified automatically for the grammar school last year. Is there anything to suggest that pass marks are well up this year?

Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 11:00 am
by capers123
pluto1 wrote:For example head master's achievement awards?
Put it in but may well not carry much weight, as unless it says it's for academic excellence (or the like), it could be construed as 'achieving really well for this childs ability' which could apply to any ability range!
Is there any mileage in considering a non-qualification type arguement on the basis that DD passed the 11+ well but not well enough? It seems an odd question as DD passed, but as DD was 1 mark short, is there any relevance in this arguement?
Finally, DD would have qualified automatically for the grammar school last year. Is there anything to suggest that pass marks are well up this year?
I heard a rumour before the exam that there were a lot more children taking the test this year because of hikes in private school fees - so parents coming away from private schools to grammar, and that they'd all been tutored in school. Now on the day of the exam, I heard that in fact there were less pupils taking the test than the previous year, which didn't tie in with the rumour. It's possible/likely that the rumour was true in other parts of the country, but not in Gloucestershire. What surprised me was the number of familiar faces on the day of the exam - not just those predictable ones from my DD's school, but ones from nursery, music, ballet, youth club, and invariably they were the parents I'd nattered to over the years.

As for the scores

Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 1:25 pm
by Etienne
Dear Pluto

Science would seem to be a good point to focus on, especially if the GS is offering three separate sciences while the comprehensive is not. It would help to have some really good supporting evidence, highlighting both ability and interest in science. Can the school do something very specific here, and state clearly that the GS would be the best place for your daughter to fulfil her potential in science? Time to fit in a few visits to science museums as well? :)
an excellent letter of support from school, which covers personality, attitude and academic abilities well
This must be very gratifying, but I'm not sure it helps at an appeal unless there's a very obvious connection with the school being appealed for.

For an oversubscription appeal I would normally recommend not putting forward a case for general academic ability, because it's usually irrelevant - unless the panel take the initiative and ask some specific questions. (You could take some general evidence along with you, but not produce it unless it suddenly seems appropriate.)

Your situation could be a bit different, however, in that score was clearly an oversubscription criterion, which leads me on to:
Is there any mileage in considering a non-qualification type arguement on the basis that DD passed the 11+ well but not well enough?
You could argue this, but I would have thought only if you have supporting evidence. For example, would the school write that, although your daughter passed with flying colours, she was in fact expected to score even more highly in the 11+? Is there any academic evidence, apart from high level 5 predictions, to support this? Were there any convincing extenuating circumstances to explain a relative underperformance?

Hope this helps.